Breastfeeding portrait by local artist is going on display at The Lemington Centre

Leanne is a portrait artist and over the last five years breastfeeding has been inspiration for her artwork. She is a mum, who breastfed both her daughters and feels passionately that this maternal act is not showcased in our society in the celebratory way it should. So she took it upon herself to paint women breastfeeding their babies and children in artwork she titled ‘breastfeed – Portraits with Purpose.’ The exhibition showcased a collection of over 20 portraits of mothers breastfeeding their babies, and toured up and down the country in community buildings, universities and art galleries.

In 2020 Leanne decided that she would like the portraits to be gifted to organisations so that they can be displayed in places where they can benefit more women and the community. To enable this to happen, Leanne launched a crowdfunder and asked members of the public to nominate an organisation that they thought would benefit having one of the portraits. The Healthworks’ Amazing Start programme was voted as one of only 12 venues across the country to receive a portrait to display and we were delighted to receive the portrait in September 2021.

Jo Jackson, the Amazing Start Lead said:
We are overwhelmed that our service has been chosen to display this beautiful piece of artwork in The Lemington Centre. It means so much to us as it will support us in our mission to make breastfeeding the norm within Newcastle.

We are proud to have supported many women throughout their breastfeeding journey and we feel that this portrait which is entitled ‘Strength’ portrays how truly amazing breastfeeding is as it captures a natural and tender moment between a mother and her baby.

We would like to thank everyone who voted for us and most of all we would like to thank Leanne for the amazing opportunity to showcase her work within our centre. We hope that visitors to our building will enjoy it as much as we will.

Through our Amazing Start programme, we provide antenatal and breastfeeding information and support to families across Newcastle-upon-Tyne through a team of trained staff and volunteers. We work together with key agencies to support families from conception to age two through the Amazing Start programme.

The Amazing Start team can offer group or one to one sessions including a virtual breastfeeding social group every Tuesday at 1pm and dedicated online support through their Breastfeeding Mams Newcastle facebook page.  Find out more about our work and how we can support you.

If you would like to see the artwork, it will be on display from Wednesday 6 October at The Lemington Centre, Tyne View, Lemington, NE15 8RZ.

Leanne Pearce is a local artist based in the North East and she has her own website if you’d like to find out more about her work https://www.leannepearce.co.uk/breastfeed   

Further information about the crowdfunder can be found here https://www.leannepearce.co.uk/crowd-funding