Today we are thrilled to feature Canadian portrait artists Tess Noren and Alyssa Baresinkoff. Together they have created “Birth in Brushstrokes” an art exhibition and corresponding book based on 50 birth stories. Learn more about their project and the inspiration behind it, why sales from the paintings will go in part to training doulas in our community, their favorite local businesses and much more!

Tell us your story! We’d love to hear a little bit about yourselves, your families, and your mission.

We are good friends and portrait artists living in a very small town in BC, Canada. Between us both, we have six children, seven and under, and share much of our artistic journey and motherhood with each other.

Alyssa is married to her high school sweetheart and together they have two kids, aged seven and four. She is a stay-at-home, work-from-home, home schooling parent who loves minimalism, gardening and creating. She has been creating and painting her whole life.

Tess is also married to her high school sweetheart, and has four kids, aged seven, five, three and one. Tess is a stay-at-home-mum, part-time artist and home-schooler. She loves gardening, keeping chickens, playing about with her kids and creating.

Together, we share a passion for birth and motherhood and it was a conversation last year, where we were sharing our own birth stories with each other, that led to the project “Birth In Brushstrokes.”

The experience of birth is life-changing and transforming, completely and permanently, and yet we feel the conversation surrounding this colossal event is small. We process our birth stories for our entire lives, so how it happens and how we feel about it, matters.

Because birth is so often kept private, and there are so many stigmas and opinions associated with almost every part of motherhood, we feel many women are left completely unprepared for pregnancy, birth and postpartum, and wholly unsupported in their journey, not only through birth, but in postpartum and beyond.

For example, birth preparation often seems to boil down to reading a few books on pregnancy and birth facts, visiting a hospital to learn their protocols and packing a hospital bag...and even these things are optional. Athletes are encouraged to prepare more thoroughly both physically and mentally for a marathon they’re about to run, than a woman about to give birth! So often when the baby appears, the mother disappears, left alone to process and get on with it.

We feel that real-life stories carry enormous potential not only for educating, but for empowering women to birth within their power—feeling respected, confident, healthy and happy, with however their birth unfolds. We also feel there is great healing and celebrating to be found for women processing past traumas—finding acceptance, camaraderie and a safe space to process. Sometimes words are hard to find for an experience such as birth, which is why we are combining the written stories with art. Art has the power to resonate in ways words sometimes can’t; we are excited to combine both!

What is the project exactly?

We are collecting fifty birth stories and using photo references from each story to create a corresponding artwork for each.

We will be publishing a book with the stories and art and also putting together an exhibition for the original artworks. Sales from the paintings will go in part to training doulas in our community where there is no maternity ward, and other birth related needs.

How did you come to collaborate together? Who came up with the project?

We have collaborated in the past. In October 2019, we worked at our local gallery to put together a motherhood themed art exhibit, called “Behind The Chiffon Curtain.”

Our love for birth and motherhood and painting bring us together, and more often than not, we’re on the exact same “artistic wavelength.” “Birth In Brushstrokes” popped into being one day, a true collaboration between us both.

What is the process that goes into picking one of 50 birth stories for your creative project?

People who are interested in participating, receive an application form that outlines the project and gives us permission to use their stories and photos as references for creating art. Participants send their written stories, which can include as little or as much as they want to share of their experience, and photographs that highlight their words.

The stories we’ve received so far have been so heartfelt, raw and honest. We’re honoured to be receiving and working with every story that comes our way.

Not all stories or artworks will make it into the book, but all will add to the mission, be it via social media, open studio events, the book or exhibition. The book will feature fifty stories, and have fifty corresponding pieces of art, so our selection process for that will focus on having a diversity in the types of stories told. The exhibition pieces will be very large paintings, and so the photo references chosen for that, will be images that can support the large size, tell a story and inspire us artistically. Paintings in the exhibition may also be published in the book.

Tell us about why it was so important to both of you to support doulas in particular.

We live in a small town where the closest maternity hospital is an hour and a half away. There are some doctors who will provide pregnancy care, but no midwives. Midwives aren’t able to attend Homebirths here, so the options and support for women are smaller than in the city. Women are often advised to induce because they’re afraid they won’t be able to make it to a hospital. There is added stress due to the lack of care here, and added planning (for an event that has no exact date). Doulas are a wonderful person to have at a women’s side, to help reduce this stress for her and her support team. Also, Tess credits the fact that her first birth didn’t end in a c-section, completely to her doula’s quick thinking with positions, which adds to her enthusiasm.

What are three of your favourite small businesses?

The Wooden Spoon— our local bistro and bakery.

Halsa Natural Sleep— an organic mattress company based in Kelowna BC, and run by two extraordinarily nice and knowledgable men.

OM natural—a small family owned company local to Armstrong BC, who make everything from organic natural sun screens, to bubble bath, tooth paste and body butter.

Anything else you want to add?

We are still accepting applications! If you are interested in sharing your birth stories and some of your photos from pregnancy, birth or postpartum, we would be honoured to receive them. Email birthinbrushstrokes.com or send us a DM on Instagram @birthinbrushstrokes

And finally, where can we find you?

o Email: birthinbrushstrokes.com

o Instagram: @birthinbrushstrokes

o Website: coming soon!