The Embrace
The sculpture on 22 January 2023
ArtistHank Willis Thomas
Year2023 (2023)
MediumBronze sculpture
Subject
Dimensions6.7 m (22 ft); height[1]
Weight400,000 pounds (180,000 kg)
LocationBoston Common,
Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Coordinates42°21′18″N 71°03′52″W / 42.35494°N 71.06436°W / 42.35494; -71.06436

The Embrace is a bronze sculpture by Hank Willis Thomas, installed on Boston Common in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, in December 2022.[2] The artwork commemorates Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King,[3][4] and depicts four intertwined arms,[5] representing the hug they shared after he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964.[6] The work was created by welding together about 609 smaller pieces.[7][8] The sculpture has received largely negative responses from critics and the public.

Description

The Embrace is a 20-foot tall (6.1 m) and 25-foot wide (7.6 m) bronze sculpture weighing 19 tons.[7] It depicts four intertwined arms and hands, representing an embrace between Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King. Details include buttons on the sleeves of his arms, and a bracelet on her wrist.[5]

The sculpture design is intended to emphasize the Kings' commitment to nonviolence and the importance of love as a motivating factor in their civil rights movement work.[8]

The sculpture is situated within a circular plaza, the 1965 Freedom Plaza, which recognizes 69 individuals who were civil rights leaders in Boston from the 1950s through the 1970s.[8] The plaza is located within the Boston Common, a public park in downtown Boston, and is situated in between the Boston Common Visitor's Center and the Boston Massacre Monument.[7]

History

In 2017, the Boston Foundation and Embrace Boston (formerly King Boston), an organization dedicated to establishing a memorial to Martin Luther King Jr. in Boston, put out a call for proposals for a public artwork in honor of King. Two years later, Hank Willis Thomas' design of The Embrace was selected from among 126 submissions.[9] The work was created by Mass Design Group in Walla Walla, Washington,[10] and was installed on the Boston Common in December 2022.[1] It was formally dedicated on January 13, 2023,[1] with dignitaries present, along with the Kings' son and one of their granddaughters.[11] Crowds gathered to view the new statue two days later on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.[5]

Reception

The sculpture on 16 Jan 2023

The piece has been widely panned by critics, the public, and at least one member of the extended Scott-King family. The work was heavily criticized and mocked across social media, with many Twitter users deeming the sculpture ugly, and others stating that the sculpture appeared to be phallic or pornographic when viewed from various angles.[12]

Journalist Travis M. Andrews, writing in The Washington Post, said many disliked that the sculpture did not depict the Kings "in full."[12] Seneca Scott, a cousin of Coretta Scott King, called the sculpture "masturbatory" in an article in Compact, deeming the piece "insulting to the black community" and a "waste of money." Scott wrote that, in his opinion, "ten million dollars were wasted."[13] Scott later clarified in an interview with The Guardian that he was unaware the sculpture was entirely funded by private donations, having assumed that the work was publicly funded, and described his initial reaction as an expression of grief over the omission of Coretta Scott King's face from the work as well as frustration over what he viewed as a lack of tangible support for black communities from the nonprofits that spearheaded the project.[14]

Journalist Michael Brendan Dougherty of the conservative National Review called the statue "an artistic and civic failure. The photograph from which it takes inspiration could be an iconic image of the Kings. But limbs, unattached to whole bodies, make for an uncanny sculptural subject. One must be told what it is to make any connection to Martin Luther King Jr."[15] Opinion columnist Rasheed N. Walters of The Boston Globe wrote that the sculpture was "aesthetically unpleasant".[16] Writing in The Washington Post, critic Sebastian Smee said the work "fails artistically," calling it visually "arresting" but ultimately "inherently awkward."[17] Comedian Leslie Jones, in her first episode as the guest host of The Daily Show, remarked that the statue unintentionally resembled the act of cunnilingus, making a pun that "...I know Dr. King went down in history, but this is not how you show it".[18]

Martin Luther King III and his daughter Yolanda Renee King speaking at the unveiling of the sculpture

Despite the heavy criticism, the piece has received some praise since its unveiling on the Boston Common in January 2023. In addition to local dignitaries, there were two members of the King family in attendance at the unveiling – the Kings' son, Martin Luther King III, and his 14-year-old daughter (the Kings' granddaughter), Yolanda Renee King. Yolanda King remarked that she saw "love and strength and unity in these hands and how they symbolize a beautiful marriage and partnership. It was one that changed the world."[19]

In response to heavy criticism of the sculpture, Thomas told a CNN interviewer shortly after the work's public unveiling that he would not change any element of the sculpture if asked, reiterating that the Boston public had voted in favor of his design: "This is a piece that was selected by the people of Boston, this is not a 'Hank just came and put something.'" He went on to claim that of the thousands of people who had helped design and fabricate the piece, none had seen the sculpture in a pornographic light, as described by critics, and he deemed that viewing of the work to be "perverse".[20] Writing in Hyperallergic, critic Seph Rodney questioned Thomas' rebuttal, saying "given the prolonged process of selecting and designing this work, it’s almost inconceivable that no one noticed that from certain angles the piece would not convey what the artist says he intended." Rodney went on to speculate that "it may be the case that in dealing with a prominent artist handling a $10 million commission those involved who might have flagged potential problems silenced themselves rather than being regarded as 'negative.'"[21]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Whyte, Murray (January 12, 2023). "'The Embrace' is a tribute to love, justice, and the unsung". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on January 13, 2023. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
  2. ↑ "A monument to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King's love". www.cbsnews.com. 8 January 2023. Archived from the original on 2023-01-09. Retrieved 2023-01-10.
  3. ↑ Whyte, Murray. "Piece by piece, Boston's monument to Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King is coming together". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on 2022-09-29. Retrieved 2023-01-10.
  4. ↑ Rosenberg, Eli (22 July 2022). "Why MLK Memorial 'The Embrace,' Destined for Boston, Is Being Built in Wash". NBC Boston. Archived from the original on 2022-11-19. Retrieved 2023-01-10.
  5. 1 2 3 Pan, Deanna (January 16, 2023). "Marveling at 'The Embrace,' Bostonians celebrate a 'superhero' on Martin Luther King Day". BostonGlobe.com. The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on 2023-01-17. Retrieved 2023-01-17.
  6. ↑ "'The Embrace' to be unveiled on Boston Common". WHDH (TV). 11 January 2023. Archived from the original on 13 January 2023. Retrieved 13 January 2023.
  7. 1 2 3 Masslive.com, Chris Van Buskirk (14 January 2023). "Boston officials unveil new MLK monument created in Walla Walla". Union-Bulletin.com. Archived from the original on 2023-01-17. Retrieved 2023-01-17.
  8. 1 2 3 Richardson, Kalia (2023-01-16). "In Boston, 'The Embrace' Honors Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s Legacy". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 2023-01-17. Retrieved 2023-01-17.
  9. ↑ "A Stunning New Boston Memorial Will Celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King". Architectural Digest. 2019-03-04. Archived from the original on 2023-01-17. Retrieved 2023-01-17.
  10. ↑ "Walla Walla Foundry turns 'The Embrace' into bronze reality for Boston". The Observer. 29 November 2022. Archived from the original on 2022-11-29. Retrieved 2023-01-10.
  11. ↑ "MLK's family participates in unveiling of 'Embrace' sculpture on Boston Common". WCVB-TV. 2023-01-13. Archived from the original on 2023-01-12. Retrieved 2023-01-13.
  12. 1 2 Andrews, Travis M. (16 January 2023). "Martin Luther King Jr. statue in Boston draws online mockery, disdain". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 2023-01-16. Retrieved 2023-01-17.
  13. ↑ O'Neill, Jesse (15 January 2023). "'Woke' $10M MLK 'penis' statue insults black community: Coretta Scott King kin". New York Post. Archived from the original on 16 January 2023. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  14. ↑ Chan, Wilfred (19 January 2023). "'It's a strange moment we live in': MLK sculptor on backlash to monument". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 11 February 2023. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  15. ↑ Dougherty, Michael Brendan (16 January 2023). "On the New MLK Statue". National Review. Archived from the original on 2023-01-16. Retrieved 2023-01-16.
  16. ↑ Hurley, Bevan (16 January 2023). "Outrage and mockery erupt over 'obscene' $10m MLK statue erected in Boston". The Independent. Archived from the original on 2023-01-17. Retrieved 2023-01-17.
  17. ↑ Smee, Sebastian (17 January 2023). "I wanted to love the new Boston MLK statue. But it's just awkward". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 18 January 2023. Retrieved 18 January 2023.
  18. ↑ Wilstein, Matt (Jan 17, 2023). "Leslie Jones Hilariously Mocks That MLK Statue in 'Daily Show' Debut". The Daily Beast. Retrieved Jan 20, 2023.
  19. ↑ "'I see love and strength:' King family delivers powerful speeches as Embrace memorial honoring MLK is unveiled". Boston Herald. 2023-01-14. Archived from the original on 2023-01-16. Retrieved 2023-01-17.
  20. ↑ "New monument honoring MLK elicits crude criticism. Hear artist's response". CNN. 17 January 2023. Archived from the original on 17 January 2023. Retrieved 17 January 2023.
  21. ↑ Rodney, Seph (25 May 2023). "Are We Asking Too Much of Public Art?". Hyperallergic. Archived from the original on 2 June 2023. Retrieved 29 June 2023.
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