A Distant Review of ‘The Embrace’ Boston, USA
By Martha Skogen, PhD
Reading time: 7 minutes
Introduction
Just in time for Valentine’s Day, this article reviews a new sculpture that celebrates the idea of love itself, ‘The Embrace’ in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. Let me be clear: I have not visited ‘The Embrace’ in person. Prior to writing this article, I intentionally exposed myself to very little online material about it. I wanted to write from my own perspective, even a remote one. As such, this essay is based upon a sampling of online images, information, and dialogue surrounding the sculpture.
Also, I am a privileged white woman (originally from the US) who writes from a remote part of the world, Norway. Despite what people may presume, there is racism here too. Although I do not experience it like my friends with different skin tones do, their important stories drive my wish to use my writing voice to make a difference. I am convinced after 20+ years in education that our society can only move forward by appreciating the contributions of ALL cultures. Artistic ones count profoundly. This extraordinary memorial enters that discussion.
Essay
‘The Embrace,’ dedicated to Martin Luther King Jr (MLK), is a large bronze public artwork by Hank Willis Thomas, a renowned Black sculptor in the US. He partnered with the MASS Design Group. The sculpture was unveiled on January 13, 2023, in the Boston Commons, an open park in the center of a bustling metropolis. It is the oldest public park in the US.
To celebrate the great civil rights leader, the sculpture features an embrace between MLK and his wife Coretta Scott King. It is based upon a single photograph that was taken of the pair soon after Dr. King received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. The sculpture is made of two sets of intertwined arms that seem to perch airily on their elbows, while weighing in at 19 tons. Importantly, the arms lack their accompanying heads, making them seem disembodied and impersonalized. This is a groundbreaking memorial indeed—one with no faces to identify the inspirational people behind it! This is a sore point for apparently many people, and my first impression was confusion. Yet I quickly changed my mind about the absence of the heads and faces. It is so radically different that I tried to step into the artists’ minds about what might be the reasoning this drastic creative decision.
We are still able to determine the identities of the arms due to Mrs. King’s pearl bracelet and MLK’s suit buttons. The hands display their wedding rings prominently. Rising almost seven meters above a flat stone area, the sculpture dwarfs viewers as they walk around, between, and underneath the arms. The seamless surface is polished while its organic unevenness captures shadows and highlights simultaneously. The colour seems to gleam gloriously in different types of sunlight including the night lighting. The high-gloss patina acts as a mirror, creating an interesting interaction between viewer and sculpture. Without having experienced it myself, I suspect this reflection creates a unique bonding effect. The viewer is also allowed into the interior of the work which surely must feel like being embraced in a welcoming manner. Love works like that.
As often happens with public artworks, the sculpture was met with harsh opinions before it was allowed a single sunrise. The collective judgments of Twitterverse and YouTube were rapid and relentless. At a cost of USD $10M, the statue immediately buzzed with words such as “waste of money”, “disrespectful”, “monstrosity”, “disaster”, “eyesore”, and “embarrassing”. One YouTuber asked how this sculpture could possibly help with integration. People of all skin tones pitched in, and the criticism devolved quickly. The arms are shaped and positioned so that from certain angles, they seem to represent sexual positions. Not surprisingly, photos quickly became memes with explicit connotations. People found legitimate references to fellatio, cunnilingus, and phallic symbols, which humans have visualised since ancient times. Some people were deeply offended, calling the sculpture “masturbatory”, to quote one member of MLK’s family. Leslie Jones, guest host of The Late Show, made fun of the sculpture as and asked the Black community exasperatedly, “Ok, Black people, what the (bleep) are we going to do?” The sculpture was quickly reduced to a bad, X-rated joke.
This is not the first time that MLK and sex have been linked. During his lifetime, MLK was plagued by rumours of infidelity. The FBI wire-tapped his rooms to entrap and control him. His private life was constantly used to derail his influence. Authorities portrayed him as a hypersexual Black man to extinguish his power and dismiss his message. Despite these gross violations of his character, MLK’s role in history remains greater than all the trespasses that were made against him. His legacy lands him among the greatest teachers that mankind has known. His fight for equality gave us some of the most important and beautiful words that have ever been spoken. His courage forced him to make the ultimate sacrifice and his life was ended by a sniper.
Even still, his message and power grew greater than death itself. There are other sculptures, street names and buildings dedicated to MLK, but ‘The Embrace’ is located in Boston, where the couple met. The sculpture celebrates a spontaneous moment when two people, dedicated to the love of fellow human beings, were entwined in spirit and in teamwork. It acknowledges Mrs. King’s role as an integral part of MLK’s message. Coretta Scott King was a pioneer in her own right. She faced misogyny, racism and hate beyond even that of her husband. I feel that it is wonderful and timely that this power couple shares the memorial. As the adage says: behind every great man is a great woman. Yet I must ask: How can one pivotal sculpture take a global message of peace, tolerance, and equality and reduce it to simple sex acts between married adults? We must presume that these discussions were intended by the creators. Throughout the design process, sculptors produce many prototypes to control every aspect of a sculpture’s viewing. This means that the sexual connotations embedded in ‘The Embrace’ were not an accident. I sense that these aspects are an integral aspect of the sculpture.
Let’s take a moment to learn from history. Ancient Greeks identified eight types of love. The three most well-known are Eros (erotic), Philia (friendly, affectionate), and Agape (selfless love of humanity). I can identify all three aspects in ‘The Embrace’. Eros can be seen in angles and perspectives of ‘The Embrace’ where they provide material for comedians as they discuss it. Philia is present because of the spontaneous moment that was captured by the camera. Lovers can also be friends. Agape is less obvious, yet I feel it is the reasoning behind the missing faces. Without the facial identification, the Kings’ message of love becomes abstracted—greater than they are—and thus applicable to anyone. The sculpture represents their humanity rather than their specific personalities. Keeping the faces absent is a brilliant way to bring the viewer into the concept of Agape. This sculpture is about them, yet much more.
The lesser-known types of love defined by the ancient Greeks are: Storge (familial), Mania (obsessive), Ludus (playful), Philautia (self-care), Pragma (businesslike, enduring). Is it possible that this single sculpture encapsulates all of these types of love? I believe so, yet I must see it in person to be convinced.
One aspect fascinates me: the sculpture’s colour and surface treatment. Even on a snowy, highly-contrasting day in January, the work projects warmth. That is no small accomplishment as Boston can be very cold. From my remote viewpoint, I am enormously intrigued by the its glossy patina surface that seems to glow and reflect a gorgeous, earthy yet heavenly colour. I want to see myself if in the mirror of the surface. I want to see others’ faces also reflected in the material. The sculpture lacks facial representation—except for our own. In this way, we are forced to face ourselves and become a part of the sculpture. This concept is brilliant, yet it has been done before with the Vietnam memorial in Washington D.C. I want to see this sculpture for myself in order to determine a few things: If ‘The Embrace’ does fully incorporate our faces while weaving them with the Kings’ message of love, the sculpture actually practices its message of inclusion. It does not offer gesturing or talk. It seems that ‘The Embrace’ indeed encapsulates all types of love while practicing a greater embrace—one that includes everyone. It means this sculpture is beyond comparison in beauty and importance. If this sculpture truly emanates a feeling of love and celebrates its many variants, it may be ingenious. It makes me ask: Can love be visualized beyond the worn tropes and symbols? Just look around to see how many times you see a heart symbol per day. Does ‘The Embrace’ teach us how to embrace our universal and eternal need for genuine love, in all its forms?
My greatest concern is that the entire artistic concept is completely dependent upon one photo. To understand the sculpture’s context and meaning, the viewer must be exposed to the photo, thus making the memorial a dual experience. As the root of the concept, the photo becomes the actual memorial, while the sculpture functions as an artistic interpretation of it. I am led to wonder: How can we encompass an entire cultural mindset, movement, and societal shift into a rendering of a single photo? I hope that upon seeing the sculpture in person, the sculpture will communicate its own statement of love, independent of the photo.
Despite conceptual sidesteps and organic forms that can easily be misinterpreted and ridiculed, it is fitting that MLK’s legacy extends beyond all simplification of his and Coretta Scott King’s life. Now, one month after its unveiling, some of the initial criticism seems to be changing. Together, the Kings’ message is more relevant now than ever. People are beginning to defend the sculpture—including its erotic associations. It is becoming a feminist beacon, something that Mrs. King likely would have enjoyed. Before I see it myself, I continue to harbor a bit of doubt: this sculpture may be a vast oversimplification of their marriage or a misstep in trying too hard. I hope it is a great testament to the enduring power of love. From here, I cannot yet determine the answer. I lean towards the idea of Agape love because this is ultimately where the Kings’ hoped to bring us. As with all art, people need time to process new concepts, especially if they are symbolic and abstracted. This sculpture defies expectations, also a fitting legacy for the people at its heart. As always, the choice for how to interpret the work is the viewers alone.
Even from my remote viewing spot across an ocean, ‘The Embrace’ beckons me. Its concept is simple and potentially life changing. This sculpture gives pause: Instead of glorifying war and violence, isn’t it time that we used our public statues to celebrate the ideology of love itself? ‘The Embrace’ causes us to talk about love in all its complexity. Yet the memorial is also extremely accessible. We can physically enter and be in their heart space, where we become part of it and all its meaning. The artist’s ability to embody and inspire the discussion around love may be his greatest goal, and ultimately, achievement. While time will tell how beloved the sculpture becomes in the public sphere, I believe I understand one thing about it. The artist, along with the Kings, show us many varieties of love. In doing so, they offer a great and essential challenge: the courage to love each other exactly as we are.