The art of pregnancy

Body artists gaze upon mothers-to-be with an eye to turning them into there latest canvas.

Painting the nursery is so last century. Today's mother-to-be has her eye set on a different canvas.

All she has to do is look down.



It's called pregnant belly art. It can take the form of a teddy bear, fish tank, giant baseball or floral theme painted on with non-toxic, washable body makeup. Or it can be traditional henna used to bless and celebrate.

Either way, adorning the baby bump is the newest form of body art for the generation that made tattoos and piercings mainstream.

A hot trend in Europe, belly painting made its formal debut in the GTA last month during a demonstration for a convention of Canadian face and body painters.

Victoria Kuek, a Toronto financial analyst, was a volunteer model.

"It's a way to remember that time of being pregnant, and I wanted to capture that," says Kuek, 23.

She was at home with her 2-year-old awaiting the birth of her second child when she stumbled on an Internet ad seeking models. It tickled. Daughter Naomi was born a couple of days later.

Trisha Gardiner, 31, was invited by a body artist who dropped into her Kitchener nutrition store and spotted her well-rounded physique.

"I was ecstatic. I love that kind of experience," says Gardiner, an artsy type who is expecting her first child next month.

"The best thing is the memory."

Tara MacLean decided on a natural henna design just before the birth of her third daughter last year.

The Toronto based singer wanted to celebrate the beauty of pregnancy and "there's something so ancient and sacred" about henna.

"To lie down and have someone pamper you like that is glorious," says MacLean, 35. "I felt like I was giving the baby a gift, too."

The Toronto artist she hired, Holly Monster of Henna by Holly, has done 17 pregnant bellies. She uses natural henna only, which is considered safe and lasts a couple of weeks. The process takes a couple of hours and costs $50 to $100, depending on the design.

Skeptics might suggest that pregnant belly art is akin to spraying graffiti on the Mona Lisa. Why try improving on perfection?

But to Marion Brown of Kitchener, president of the Canadian Association of Face and Body Artists, "it's all in the eye of the beholder."

"It's subjective. It's art," says Brown. "It's just another expression of how beautiful it is to be pregnant."