Pembrokeshire, Wales
Begins November 4, 2025 (6-month project)
Raising Her Voice: A Collective Portrait of Motherhood is a new participatory art project funded by Arts Council Wales and The National Lottery. It explores the transition into motherhood. Led by Pembrokeshire-based portrait artist Ella Starling, the project invites mothers from across the county to reflect on their experiences through art and shared stories.
Combining portraiture, Mothers’ Circles and collaborative workshops, participants will help shape how they are portrayed and how their stories are told. With the mothers’ input and direction, Ella Starling will create honest and personal representations of motherhood, works that speak to both individual journeys and collective experience.
Ella Starling will co-facilitate the two Mothers’ Circles with Naomi Glass, a matrescence coach and Director of the Real Health Collective CIC and Samara Hawthorn, founder of WellMama CIC, providing supportive environments for mothers to explore the complexities of motherhood in today’s uncertain world. During the second circle, participants will co-create a collective artwork to be exhibited alongside the portraits.
“Motherhood is often oversimplified or marginalised in visual culture,” says Ella Starling. “This project responds by creating nuanced representations of motherhood today, challenging limiting cultural narratives and examining how mothers navigate matrescence amid climate crisis and shifting cultural landscapes.”
The project will culminate in two public exhibitions and a community workshop in March and April 2026 in Pembrokeshire, presenting the four co-created portraits, supporting works and the collective art piece. These exhibitions will invite open conversation around motherhood, mental health and community resilience.
Recent research highlights the importance of such work: three-quarters of new and expectant mothers report struggling with their mental health, yet only one in five feel adequately supported (BabyCentre UK, 2025). Raising Her Voice aims to address this gap using creativity to build visibility, understanding and community.
Mothers based in Pembrokeshire, with a child under the age of 5, who are interested in taking part are welcome to contact Ella at ella.t.starling@gmail.com or @ellastarlingart.
About the Artist
Ella Starling is a visual artist based in North Pembrokeshire. Her practice centres around portraiture but explores many subjects through the vehicle of figuration and portraiture. She sets the intention to amplify underrepresented voices, respond to the challenges we face today and foster dialogue around community, resilience and connection.
All images © Ella Starling