Texas Maternal Death Rates Featured in Immersive Health Museum Exhibit

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Art and Research Meet Story in the "Call Me Mother Experience", Curated by Houston's First Black Poet Laureate

HOUSTON, TX, UNITED STATES, August 31, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Debuting October 4, 2026, The Health Museum unveils the Call Me Mother Experience, an immersive, multi-site exhibition and call to action aimed at raising awareness about Black maternal health in the United States. The curator, Deborah D.E.E.P. Mouton chose to debut the work in Houston, Harris County, where March of Dimes statistics rate it the worst place in the U.S. for Black women to give birth. Research from the Commonwealth Fund which promotes an equitable healthcare system, shows Black mothers are more than twice as likely to die than any other ethnicity, Mouton, a multitalented artist and Houston's first Black poet laureate, was inspired to create the exhibit after writing a poem while miscarrying in her home at the end of her first trimester.

D.E.E.P.'s poem is the pillar of the exhibition that shares the powerful stories of expectant Black mothers, too many of whom do not survive their pregnancies. Visitors should prepare for an immersive experience that includes poetry, film, performance, 3D sculptures, and original paintings created by a collective of nationally and internationally recognized artists, including D.E.E.P., Omari Maynard, Stacey Allen, Keda Sharber, and many others.

“After two years working in the community to amplify local stories, I hope people see this exhibit as a celebration of our collective voices in the fight for maternal equity, " says D.E.E.P. "Every artist in the collective has had their own personal experience, be it infant death, fibroids, or birth complications. We have lived through these losses. We are using our art to demand better maternal healthcare practices in our lifetime.”

With generous support from HEB and several other philanthropic organizations, the exhibit walks visitors toward an opening question and into a reimagined waiting room, showing perspectives that range from father to mother and from despair to healing. Each site displays familial love and the grief that comes with the Black maternal health crisis in America, ending in a call to action.

The opening reception takes place Sunday, October 4, 2026 from 3-5 p.m. at The Health Museum, 1515 Hermann Drive in Houston, TX. Ticket prices range from $12-15.00. The exhibition runs through February 28, 2027. The Call Me Mother Experience is fiscally sponsored by Fresh Arts, a 501c3 Houston-based arts service organization.

Visit the Call Me Mother Experience website for more information, including additional satellite activations at community sites and faith-based organizations throughout the Greater Houston area.

Deborah Mouton
The Call Me Mother Experience
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