Where Mothers Do Not Grow

In Where Mothers Do Not Grow, transgender woman Citlali Zelaya shapes an unfulfilled yearning for motherhood into breathtaking works of art-sculptures that capture tender intimacy in maternal love. As her career blossoms, so does her obsession with crafting the perfect piece: a child born from clay and imagination that would fill up the void left by her inability to conceive.

But the weight of her longing pushes her to the breaking point. Citlali locks herself in her studio, armed with the conviction that she can create life through her art, while her body and spirit begin to deteriorate. Her final masterpiece is an achingly realistic sculpture of the child she might have had, and it becomes at once her crowning creation and her undoing.

Told with deep emotional insight, Where Mothers Do Not Grow is a rare creation story of identity and loss of the beautiful born out of despair, the love transcending biology, and the silent battles that many bear far beneath the surface. Unforgettable and heartbreaking, the story of Citlali will stay long after the final word is read.