Source: Boston Globe / Getty
Backlash and mockery spilled across social media shortly after “The Embrace Statue” was unveiled in Boston Jan. 13. Some people say the piece, which was created to honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, looks like a giant penis.
According to the New York Post, the phallic 20-foot tall, 40-foot wide statue was erected in Boston Common, a popular park located in the city’s downtown area, Friday. The sculpture was made with good intentions, despite its naughty appearance.
The massive bronze statue was inspired by a photograph of King hugging his wife Coretta Scott King after he won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. It was designed by Brooklyn-based conceptual artist Hank Willis Thomas, according to the report.
Here’s the bad part. Thomas’s interpretive piece only features the couple’s arms during their embrace and not their heads, which has sparked criticism and a slew of jokes online.
Coretta Scott King’s cousin slams ‘The Embrace Statue’ after its unveiling
From different angles, some people say the statute looks like a penis. Even Coretta Scott King’s cousin thought the same thing after he saw the statue Friday.
“The mainstream media … was reporting on it like it was all beautiful, ’cause they were told they had to say that,” Seneca Scott told the New York Post. “But then when it came out, a little boy pointed out — ‘That’s a penis!’ and everyone was like, ‘Yo, that’s a big old dong, man.'”
“If you had showed that statute to anyone in the ’hood, they’d have been like, ‘No, absolutely not,'” the 43-year-old Oakland native added.
In an article published by Compact Magazine, Scott went into further detail about his disdain for the statue, calling it a “masturbatory metal homage.”
“Ten million dollars were wasted to create a masturbatory metal homage to my legendary family members — one of the all-time greatest American families,” he wrote.
After the statue’s unveiling Friday, a few jokesters on Twitter commented that the piece resembled a sex act. Other users slammed the artist for disrespecting Dr. King’s legacy.
Martin Luther King III says he has no issue with the statue
According to CNN, Martin Luther King III approved Thomas’s sculpture before the event. During an interview with Don Lemon Jan. 16, King said that he was “satisfied” with the end result of the piece.
“I think that’s a huge representation of bringing people together,” he shared. “I think the artist did a great job. I’m satisfied. Yeah, it didn’t have my mom and dad’s images, but it represents something that brings people together.”
King added:
“And in this time, day and age, when there’s so much division, we need symbols that talk about bringing us together.”
CNN noted that the artwork was the result of a public/private fundraising partnership backed by the city and Embrace Boston, a racial and economic justice nonprofit. It’s unclear how much was raised to complete the project.
Thomas has not commented on the backlash as of yet, but on his website, he said that was piece was intended to represent the “abstraction” of storytelling.
“All representation is an abstraction, hopefully, it allows us to be open to more dynamic and complex forms of representation that don’t stick us to the narrative that oversimplifies a person or their legacy, and I think this work really tries to get to the heart of that,” his statement added.
What are your thoughts about the MLK statue? Sound off in the comment section.
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