23rd Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Artistic
Metamorphosis of Motherhood

"Metamorphosis of Motherhood" is a visual exploration of the radical transformation a woman undergoes through pregnancy and childbirth. This digital series, created from photographs of a pregnant doll, distorts, deconstructs, and reimagines the female form. The figures are stretched, multiplied, split, and hollowed out, symbolizing the physical, emotional, and psychological shifts that occur when a body becomes a vessel for new life. The birth moment is depicted as both powerful and surreal, a transition where time seems suspended. These images challenge the romanticized view of pregnancy, exposing the raw reality of change, loss, and rebirth. In this metamorphosis, a woman does not simply become a mother, she is reshaped, reconstructed, and forever transformed. This artwork is part of a large art project called “Fragile Beginnings” about the complexity of motherhood and the sanctity of human life.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 06.2024
Date Uploaded: 11.2025
Photo Location: Barcelona, Spain
Copyright: © Leah Larisa Bunshaft