Fifth Stage of Labour is a visual installation that delves into the complex dynamics between a surrogate and a baby, a parent and their child, and being a citizen of a state.

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The work strives to capture a "brief" moment in the process of labour, and shed light on the multifaceted nature of surrogacy, particularly focusing on the postpartum stage. Through the narrative of a song composed as a lullaby  ״בוא ואשק לך״ (Bo Ve'eshk Lecha), it explores the surrogate and the baby’s connection during and after the pregnancy process. 

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Traditionally, labour has been classified into four stages, namely the opening of the cervix, the birth of the baby, the delivery of the placenta, and the crucial first hours after birth. However, the fifth stage, as suggested in this project, is taking a closer look at the ways in which the narrative of the new family can go.  

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Drawing upon recent research on the pregnancy process, the work highlights the significance of the sonic bond created between the woman and the foetus during the final two-thirds of the pregnancy. This sonic effect of the voice becomes imprinted in the baby's memory, enabling lifelong recognition of the woman who carried them.

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The installation comprises three elements, mimicking a circular and repetitive movement: a music box, a lullaby song, and a video projected onto multiple different pieces of diaper cloth. It incorporates various symbolic attributes, such as references to the ancient biblical story of Hagar and Ishmael, and imagery of the Zamzam Well, as well as an Israeli poem written in 1940 with promises of a glorious future. In doing so, it situates the case of Israel within a broader conversation about the process of surrogacy.

 

My positionality as a gay man, with a potential of entering similar dynamics, led me to question the connections between the parties involved in the aftermath of surrogate pregnancy, lying primarily in the hands of the adopting parents. I imagine a family for myself in future Israel and my options seem to be running away. 

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The fifth stage of labour looks at that connection between a birth mother and a baby as an inseparable one, and casts doubt over the extent to which it could be left behind.