“All my subjects have found their inspiration in my childhood,” explained Bourgeois. A recurrent subject for the artist in this respect is the spider, whose association with textiles and weaving reflects the time Bourgeois spent as a child in her parents’ tapestry restoration workshop in France. Presiding over the plaza of the National Gallery of Canada, Maman – a giant egg-carrying arachnid cast in bronze – was inspired by the artist’s own mother, and stands as a nurturing and protective symbol of fertility, shelter and the home.

Louise Bourgeois, Maman, 1999, cast 2003. © The Easton Foundation. Photo: NGC