Maya Hewitt
After Maya Hewitt became a new mother, drawing on the emotions of that period birth, life, faith, and family. Combining references to the Madonna and Child with autobiographical elements from her Filipino roots, the paintings evoke subjective visions where the physical and emotional blur, in search of ancestral connections. The work centers on the dynamic between two figures: a mother's instinct to protect her child, and the contradictory emotions of motherhood.
Hewitt begins with an open-ended structure, letting the narrative unfold through the process of painting. Ink drawings serve as her starting point, where feelings translate directly into shape and color, building oneiric, dreamlike environments that merge internal and external realities. The human figure represents a precarious balance between intimacy and exposure, while childlike paraphernalia toys, figurines, balloons, posters — appear as ghostly, protective apparitions, some deconstructing imposed notions of motherhood and childhood.
Maya Hewitt (b. 1981, London) received her BFA from the University of Brighton (2004), following a placement at Nagoya University of Arts (2003) and a Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation grant. She has held residencies at Tokyo Wonder Site (Aoyama) and Luzhu Village (Taiwan).
Solo exhibitions include Nunu Fine Art (Taiwan), Misako & Rosen (Tokyo), 10 Chancery Lane (Hong Kong), and Bischoff/Weiss (London), with her work also shown at the Thomas Olbricht and Reydan Weiss Collections, IMOCA Dublin, SOKA Art Center, Frieze London, Art Fair Tokyo, and galleries including Union Pacific, Flux Factory, and Mark Rome Gallery.
