From personal blog to thriving art community, Mama on Palette is where mums heal and find joy through art

Every other month, a group of women in Singapore meet to share their love of art. It’s a community made up entirely of mothers. They visit museums, attend art events, and create art while sharing their experiences of motherhood. 

The women that make up Mama on Palette, some 300 mothers, all have different artistic interests. Some paint, some crochet, yet others make ceramics, design acrylic trays and fabric patterns, and more. Some also craft artistic items such as handmade soaps, silicone mats, floral keychains, and charms made of yarn. 

Mama on Palette also organises art events, such as their annual Mother’s Day art exhibition, art workshops run by their members, and masterclasses ranging from how to create artwork to how to become an entrepreneur. 

Their latest exhibition, titled “Through Her Eyes: The Unseen of Motherhood”, celebrates this Mother’s Day and is open from today until May 26, 2024.

Their slogan: Happier mamas, through art.

How Mama on Palette came about, however, was less joyful. Its founder, Alice Yu Yuebo, was on the verge of prenatal depression while pregnant in 2017. 

“In the third trimester of my pregnancy, I couldn’t recognise myself,” the 32-year-old said. “I suffered from really bad water retention, my whole face and body was swollen, and my shoe size was four to five sizes bigger.”

She was also achingly lonely. As a Singapore permanent resident at that time, she had no family and very few close friends in the country, besides her husband, to share her pregnancy or work struggles.

“One day, my husband suggested I draw in a journal to express myself,” Yu said. The suggestion brought back fond memories of her short stint as a comic and cartoon artist at the Chinese newspaper Lianhe Zaobao.

“I forgot how much I liked to draw, so I just started doodling,” she said. “One cartoon led to another, and somehow, I found myself smiling and laughing again.”

Yu gave birth to her son in 2018 and even though the first six months were tough as she adjusted to life as a new mum, she had her art to fall back on and was in a “better mental state”.

She started a blog to share how art helped her navigate first-time motherhood, calling it ‘Mama on Palette’.

MAKING MUMS FEEL LIKE THEMSELVES AGAIN

Before long, Yu’s blog gained an audience. 

“I shared my drawings, blog posts and reflections on motherhood on my Facebook,” Yu said. “Mums whom I didn’t even know started messaging me and a lot of them were also PRs.

“They were lonely and their parents and family weren’t in Singapore – it made me realise how important it was for mums like us to have local support groups.”

Yu and the mums would share their struggles and how much they missed their artistic hobbies after motherhood took over. 

This inspired her to organise “artsy playdates” – weekend outings for mums, dads, and their little ones to meet in person and hang out in places where they could appreciate nature or the arts, including the Botanic Gardens, National Art Gallery, Goodman Arts Centre and Singapore Art Museum. 

They also had casual art jamming sessions where they could draw and express themselves creatively. 

“We’d go out and do things that re-ignited our love for art,” Yu said. “We were just happy to be able to spend time on our hobbies.”

One of the mums Yu met was Joyce Orallo Lim, in 2018. Lim was then a stay-at-home mum with a two-year-old son

“I loved to paint and design floral ceramic pieces, but the moment I became a mum, I thought my life as an artist was over,” Lim told CNA Women. She connected with Yu during a casual all-women gathering where Yu told her about the artsy playdates she was organising. 

“It captured my interest because she loves art and she’s a mum,” Lim said. “I remember thinking, ‘That’s me. I’m not alone after all.’”

Meeting Lim and other like-minded mums, Yu realised how passionate these women were about both motherhood and art and decided to take Mama on Palette to the next level.  

After pandemic restrictions eased in 2021, and while still juggling her full-time job as a marketing manager, Yu set about organising Mama on Palette. 

She set up an executive committee, worked on official partnerships and showcased members’ artworks to the public. 

Part of the move involved creating a paid membership programme for S$50 per year, which comes with priority access to showcase or sell one’s artwork, the opportunity to collaborate with partnering galleries, networking sessions between mums, entrepreneurs and artists, and workshops to help women establish their art business.

All membership and event registration fees are channelled into running events, paying artists and workshop facilitators, and maintaining the community. 

Mama on Palette’s first collaboration was with the National Library Board in 2021 where members’ art pieces were displayed at the Central Public Library.

BRINGING TOGETHER MUMS OF DIFFERENT BACKGROUNDS 

It was important for Yu that mothers of all backgrounds – Singaporean or non, professional artists or amateurs – were welcome at Mama on Palette. 

Praveena Mangipudi is one such mum. After 18 years of working in fields like computer science and interior design, she put her career on hold after she became a mum in 2015.  

“I never saw myself as an artist, but I saw Mama on Palette’s exhibitions in 2021, and they inspired me,” Praveena said. 

“The artists weren’t professionally trained – they were enthusiasts and hobbyists like me,” she added. “More interestingly, they all looked so happy with one another, and I wanted something like that.” 

But she didn’t feel confident enough to join the community. “Though I knew it wasn’t the case, it felt as if everyone in Mama on Palette knew a lot about art, whereas I just happened to like artsy stuff.”

It was only after meeting Yu and Lim that she discovered there were other mothers like her in the Mama on Palette community who simply enjoyed expressing themselves through art. 

So when the non-profit society organised one of their art submission exercises for their annual Mother’s Day art exhibition last year, she decided to give it a shot. She created a piece featuring quilling, which uses strips of paper to create decorative designs.

“To my surprise, I got selected,” Praveena said. 

GROWING MAMA ON PALETTE INTO AN ACTIVE COMMUNITY

“While I’m still a full-time marketer, it’s through Mama on Palette that I get to release my creativity and improve different skills like events management, leadership, establishing partnerships, and so on,” Yu said. 

“Working on this has been so exciting and energising for me. And I believe that’s what many mums in our community feel, too.”

The bond between the Mama on Palette mums goes beyond sharing a love for art, Lim said. She told CNA Women that she turned to the community after going through a few miscarriages after the birth of her son.

“I always appreciate how we’re also there for one another during important milestones and the tough times we go through as mums,” Lim said, citing the different gatherings where members can share their struggles as mothers, wives, daughters, and more. 

“I’m so weak alone,” she added. “When I have support around me, I become strong and courageous – and that’s what I hope for other mums like me,” she added.