A Beautiful Mess – An Installation Embracing Journey of Motherhood and Their Silent Struggles

As mothers, we want to give the best version of ourselves for our children, yet sometimes we often neglect our own needs. Motherhood can be the hardest job we could bear, but also the most rewarding job we ever have. Some of the time we experience exhaustion, guilt, blues, insecurities, anxiety, and some other times our happiness becomes very simple and our life becomes more meaningful. Some of the time we asked ourselves, “am I a good Mother?”

Chosen as the winner of Best Booth Awards in Arch Id exhibition 2022, A Beautiful Mess installation, designed by Seniman Ruang, serves as a manifestation of a powerful message about women empowerment, self-love, and acceptance to many mothers, by embracing the love and silent struggles of motherhood as a harmony of the beauty and the mess. Because we realize that in order to love our child, we have to start to love ourselves first.

As part of award-winning Wonders of Weaving “Urban Wonders 2022” program, this 74 sqm installation shows a different angle to experience an architecture, where its soul and aesthetic lies in the power of meanings that resonate to the people. Numerous keywords were collected from many mothers explaining their motherhood journeys through the good time and bad time, printed on the hanged and fluctuated Sandei blinds that creates a dynamic mazy space. Four meters high, beautiful messy blinds composition was formed as one open installation, illuminated by arranged spotted lights designed by ErreLuce. The spatial installation was designed to be a simple monochrome canvas for all the poems and honest photographs captured by Carol Kuntjoro from real moments of motherhood.

Stretched across the center of the space, an interactive wall of letters to our dear Moms, became the most engaging part of the installation where it brought emotions and tears to many of those who read and wrote. Here is where people can express, support, and write their feelings to their mothers or any other mothers on white papers, attached in grid on a contrasting black wall. A Beautiful Mess installation tried to expose the truth to let people imagine a more humanized version of motherhood; we are all vulnerable, but we are all strong and have capabilities to overcome our struggles.