We recently connected with Mariah Maddox and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Mariah, thanks for joining us today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

The most meaningful project that I’ve worked on thus far has been my motherhood portrait study. “Motherhood: The Thread That Holds Us Together” is a compelling visual collection of the motherhood narratives of myself and six other women within my community. The visuals represent the raw, vulnerable, and intimate moments of the motherhood journey that aren’t often seen. When I became a mom, I was utterly lonely and dealing with postpartum depression and anxiety. Though I felt siloed in my experience, I knew for a fact that I couldn’t be alone in the hardships that the transition into motherhood presented. The idea of the study came about from me wanting to create something that would bring the community together, but at the same time encourage some very important dialogue around the realities of motherhood.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I’m a mama and a wife. What got me into being a visual storyteller is actually a favorite pastime that I share with my own mother. I remember how she used to pull out old, dusted shoeboxes from a drawer, and we’d sit together looking through the worn-down photos. I loved the idea of stilling a moment, and having those stills passed down through one’s heritage. So for me, storytelling became a way of weaving my lineage. Of capturing the narrative of existence. Though my work has ranged from creative photoshoots and weddings to business-related photoshoots and regular portrait sessions, the base of my work is deeply rooted in being able to capture Black womanhood, sisterhood, and now, motherhood.

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

I wish I knew how many grants existed for creatives. I feel like I’m just now finding out how much I have access to, and had I known sooner, maybe I would have been able to start pursuing some of my deep passion projects sooner. But now that I know, I’ve also made it an intentional thing to let other creatives around me know about the resources available to us.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of being a creative is getting the opportunity to capture narratives that may otherwise be overlooked or go unheard. I believe every one has a story, but not every one has the means to tell their story in a way that will ensure it’s actually heard. Having a chance to be that bridge, and to bring people’s stories to light, is so so fulfilling in ways I can’t even begin to explain.     

Contact Info:

• Website: www.viewsbyri.com
• Instagram: viewsbyri

Image Credits
All photos by me, Mariah Maddox