Colours of Motherhood
You are not alone. So why does motherhood feel so lonely?
This project shares both the challenges motherhood brings, that is often a hidden reality of motherhood. It’s putting together the opposites of the beauty, love and challenges to remind us that all these feelings and experiences can, and do co-exist.
Colours of Motherhood has been created to validate, support and connect mums from all walks of life, irrespective of age.
The magazine contains 14 stories from mums about a challenge they have faced in motherhood. Included with each story is a photo Rachel created of that mum about their experience and how they felt during that challenge.
“Mothers everywhere, whatever their individual stories, are likely to emerge from viewing the [Colours of Motherhood] exhibition (or after reading the magazine) with their cups full, ready to head back into the trenches, feeling a little less alone and a little more seen.”
Dr Hayley Glasson (GP & Mum)
There are three complementary areas of the Colours of Motherhood Project
This is the first image that has been created for Colours of Motherhood.
It was awarded second place in Families category at the prestigious Icon International Photography Awards.
Many mums have messaged me to say how seen and validated they felt when seeing this photo.
Fourteen real mums have bravely shared a challenge they have experienced in motherhood. Rachel then created a creative representation of how these mums felt about themselves during their challenge and this became the Colours of Motherhood photos. They were displayed at an exhibition at the end 2024. These photos are described as unapologetic, raw photographic representation of these mum’s stories.
The magazine is a standalone piece in itself, containing the photos alongside the stories shared by these mums.
The photos are available for displaying in waiting rooms, and the magazine is available for wholesale opportunities.
Colours of Motherhood’ brilliantly disrupts the sanitised narrative our culture imposes on maternal experience. Through both the evocative photos and the stories captured, this project creates vital space for authentic maternal stories to breathe, challenging the restrictive ‘meant to be’ scripts that so often silence mothers’ lived realities.
Dr Sophie Brock, Motherhood Studies Sociologist
What are the motherhood stories about?
Colours of Motherhood is about sharing stories about challenges we face in motherhood, and I’ve created a photo representation of these challenges for an exhibition – this was held in late 2024, and received an amazing response from the local community. There are more events being planned, the best place to be is in my emails so I can let you know as soon as details are finalised.
The photos portray the feelings we have about ourselves and the challenges. While the specifics of our own experiences of motherhood differ, how we feel about ourselves and the words we say to ourselves is often a shared experience. The magazine supplements the photos with the stories from the mums themselves, about the challenge that they’ve shared, along with what they love about motherhood.
Overwhelm
Losing identity in motherhood
Blended family
Same sex couple
Postnatal depression
Hyperemesis gravidarium
Disability diagnosis of a child
School refusal
Breastfeeding challenges
Cultural differences
Fertility challenges
Mothering with twins
Sleep deprivation
Breastfeeding challenges
Feelings of inadequacy as a single mum
Together, we can challenge the perfectionist, ‘do it all’ ideal that so many of us feel is the expectation. Every mama, no matter the circumstance has challenges. I know for me, these challenges have been incredibly isolating.
My hope is that this project might also help mums feel a little less lonely and a little less isolated in knowing that there are not alone in this rollercoaster.
Let’s celebrate motherhood fully, with connection and validation.
Rachel’s photography has an extraordinary ability to capture the very essence of what it means to be a mother. She’s given mothers, and all of us, a true gift – a space to feel seen, valued and celebrated.
Danielle Dobson, Mum of 2
In the Media for Colours of Motherhood
Meet Rachel
Rachel is an internationally multi-award-winning family and business photographer based in Wollongong. She’s also a mum of three adoring, busy boys and a plant enthusiast. She’s now sharing her own hysterectomy journey to bring hidden truths & shared experiences into everyday chats.
She is known for her calm, creative and being able to create a space for people to feel comfortable and be truly themselves.
Discover more about Rachel here.