4th March 2025 Lea-Maria Kneisel
“With the birth of every child, you should actually grow two more arms.”
It is hard to believe that Modjgan Hashemian is spending at Uferstudios only the second artistic residency of her career, as the choreographer can look back on a professional career spanning over 25 years. “It never worked out before - I was usually in the middle of productions when deadlines were looming or, as a single mother, unable to arrange long stays outside Berlin,” says the choreographer about the lack of opportunities for artistic residencies in recent years. The residency that Modjgan is spending at Uferstudios in 2024 is therefore a special moment in her career.
She had long planned to explore the topic of motherhood artistically - but it was the death of her own mother this year that gave her the decisive impetus to pursue this research more intensively. The residency therefore came at exactly the right time - it was the starting signal for Modjgan Hashemian to deal with the subject of motherhood in all its physical, psychological and social facets and to approach the complexity of the subject both physically and on a theoretical level.
One focus of Modjgan's artistic exploration of the topic is the physical and psychological transformation that she associates with motherhood. What changes does a woman* go through when she becomes a mother? And how does she continue to transform herself after giving birth?
“When I became a mother myself 19 years ago, I gained a different perspective on my own mother, who raised three children on her own."
Modjgan Hashemian, who has often explored her Iranian roots in her past works and frequently incorporated documentary elements into her choreographies, also reflects on her own points of reference on the subject of motherhood in this residency: “When I became a mother myself 19 years ago, I gained a different perspective on my own mother, who raised three children on her own. I am also a single mother, and I keep thinking that the two arms you have are not enough to do justice to everything else you have to manage on the side.” The choreographer takes this idea further by questioning society's ideas of the “ideal body” of a mother in her residency and taking them to absurdity: “I asked myself what the perfect mother should look like, far removed from any beauty clichés. And then the image of the octopus came to me - the idea that you grow two extra arms with the birth of each child - I found that very fitting.”
She takes this image with her into her research, to which she also invites two dancers: Brit Rodemund and Laura Alonso also have children, but are each mothers of a different generation. Modjgan works with them to explore motherhood choreographically and physically. She is supported dramaturgically by Anke Sauerteig, who repeatedly brings her reading material on the subject of motherhood to the Heizhaus. “For me, it is important to hear many perspectives and to look at the topic from very different angles,” says Modjgan, explaining her approach.
For this reason, she has also invited a midwife to give the choreographer insights into birth processes and the connection between mother and child during her residency. Modjgan is particularly fascinated by the umbilical cord and the question of the extent to which the connection between mother and child continues after the physical separation of the umbilical cord - be it through emotional ties or intuitive connections.
But Modjgan Hashemian also deals with many other questions in connection with motherhood: What forms of motherhood exist in the animal kingdom? How are mothers portrayed in our society? How in literature and music? The question of how the symbolism of motherhood is perpetuated in the german language – for example through terms such as “Mutterkuchen” (cervix), “Muttermal” (birth mark) and “Muttermund” (placenta) - s also part of Modjgan's multifaceted interest in the subject.
One highlight of her residency is an unusual dinner invitation: Modjgan Hashemian meets with a wide variety of people and asks them in advance to bring an object that the guests associate with their respective mothers. Many stories unfold that evening - nostalgic, encouraging, but also sad tales take their place at the table.
Despite all the research, the choreographer does not see motherhood as something exclusively feminine. After all, one aspect of motherhood that is very important to Modjgan, namely that of care, can also be provided by men or non-binary people and therefore exists beyond biological concepts. This dimension also flows into Modjgan's research and expands the classic understanding of motherhood.
Interested in the goal of a performance, but not necessarily oriented towards it - this is how Modjgan Hashemian describes the space for reflection that has opened up to her through the residency at Uferstudios. However, her residency is not only a personal space for reflection, but above all an inspiring investigation and intensive examination of a topic that can be understood as a fundamental human task - and which Modjgan Hashemian will certainly incorporate into artistic and social discourse in one way or another in the future.
Modjgan Hashemian spent a total of 4 weeks in the second half of 2024 in the Heizhaus at Uferstudios as part of the Berlin residency program “Trials” 2024, funded by the Berlin Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion.