Pembrokeshire-based portrait and figurative artist Ella Starling presents ‘Raising Her Voice: A Collective Portrait of Motherhood’ - a new body of work exploring the transition into motherhood in collaboration with mothers from across the county.

The exhibition opens on Mother’s Day (March 15) at Oriel y Parc in St Davids, between 2 and 4.30pm.

Working predominantly in oils and charcoal, Ella creates intimate, emotionally charged portraits that make space for experiences often left unspoken.

Based on in-depth interviews with three local mothers, alongside Mothers’ Circles and her own lived experience, the project offers an honest portrayal of matrescence - the profound psychological and emotional shift that accompanies becoming a mother.

“I want to create honest, personal representations of motherhood that challenge the often oversimplified and limiting narratives we see in visual culture,” said Ella.

Through extended conversation and collective reflection, the work reveals how many women move through birth and early motherhood without space to process what they have experienced. The focus quickly shifts to the child, yet the internal transformation and even traumas of the mother are rarely acknowledged.

One portrait draws on a powerful image described during the process, of a dark cave with the mother looking down at their broken body. The piece holds both strength and vulnerability in tension, acknowledging birth as both life-giving and at times, deeply destabilising.

Developed over six months and funded by Arts Council Wales and the National Lottery, Raising Her Voice advocates for community-embedded maternal support.

Ella who also teaches Life Drawing in St Davids, added: “If maternal wellbeing support is not embedded within our communities, we will continue to see mothers struggle in silence and increasingly alarming statistics around maternal mental health.”

The exhibition invites audiences into an intimate and urgent conversation about motherhood, maternity care and collective care.

The exhibition runs from March 15 to March 30.