Artist who found biological mom after 40 years gasped on seeing her paintings — he instantly knew she was his mom

Andrew Judd, an artist (@andrew_j_judd), met his birth mother for the first time in his 40s, only to discover he was an absolute replica of her. Not only in looks, but they also shared their passion for painting. In fact, Andrew's mom had been creating the other half of his art. Andrew, in conversation with a Canadian artist, Julia Veenstra (@jveenstraartist), recalled his first meeting with his biological mother, which shocked him beyond words. The reel posted on July 31, 2025, has received over 350k views on Instagram.

Andrew was 7 when he found out about his adoption, and until he was almost 40, he had never contacted his real mom. "She was an artist," Andrew gushed, saying his mom, surprisingly, was a painter who also played piano. He reached her address, and the minute she opened the door, Andrew said, "It was like I was looking in a mirror." Andrew's mom then took him to her studio, where a bigger surprise (or rather, shock) was awaiting him. "On her easel, she had been painting arrows into her paintings, and in my studio, at home, I was painting targets," he said. Well, that wasn't the only painting that amazed Andrew; he also saw his birth mom painting keys, and back home, he was painting keyholes." Andrew immediately realized why he was so inclined towards painting; perhaps, it was something he'd picked up from his mom. "There is something within us that tells us this is the path," he said.

What Andrew experienced is what they call 'genetic mirroring.' Well, in simple words, the On Your Feet Foundation said, "Genetic mirroring is being able to see yourself in the family that surrounds you because of your shared DNA, providing a basis of familiarity to your cultural, racial, and ethnic roots." Meanwhile, reacting to the video, @gillian_ley commented, "When I met my birth mother and visited her home for the first time, she had the exact same Andrew Wyeth print (Christina’s World) over her sofa that I had hanging in my house and a huge coffee table book about him — our favorite artist and painting." @dkmoniz said, "This made me weep; it's so incredibly beautiful. You were woven from her being, forever intertwined. Once a woman has conceived, she carries some of her baby's cells with her for the rest of her life. You have never separated!"

A user, @yitartlifeideas, wrote, "Similar experience. I have a great-grandfather and a grandfather who are both painters. I didn’t grow up around them or study their work as a kid, but when I got older and started looking at it, I realized I used the same line work and bright color palette as they did." Another user who goes by @raw.comix revealed, "This is wild. I didn’t meet my dad until I was 13. Ever since, like, 1st or 2nd grade, I wanted to draw comics and was obsessed with graffiti. It turns out my dad was a comic artist and well-known graffiti writer." @rawtilapia wrote, "Stories like this remind me that I’m not crazy and that the magic of human connection is very real. We wonder why we feel so compelled to travel to certain places or to do certain things with our lives."

You can follow Julia Veenstra (@jveenstraartist) on Instagram for lifestyle content.