Who Were Our Mothers Before They Became Mothers?

For children it is impossible to imagine their mother as anything else but that: Mommy. Idolizing one's mom is rooted in the deepest of the pediatric psychology so that, even as we grow, separating the real woman from the image remains hard. We tend to either become all-forgiving towards our mother or deeply resentful. It is easy of course to blame our issues and our traumas on the past and on her. What isn't easy is to see her through the eyes of an external observer, to try and understand her from another point of view.

Who were our mothers before they became mothers? Mothers Before is a touching Instagram photography project honoring the women who, in due course, gave birth to us. The photographs are submitted along with brief descriptions written by the daughters of the subjects. They are curated by Edan Lepucki, author of the bestselling novels California and Woman No. 17, and make up a series of eye-opening images. Lepucki attempts to make us question our families, ourselves and, ultimately, recognize the unique personae behind mothers, with their dreams and hopes; both broken and achieved, their flaws and their qualities, their individuality.