The sculpture professor brought a vaginal speculum to the class but told the students that it was a piece made by a famous contemporary artist. The responses in the workshop were broad.
“Despite its simplicity, it has rare staying power.”
“The piece is innovative in theory, but it becomes increasingly more mainstream when executed.”
“The thickness of the material along with the fluidity of the structure results in a visual paradox with multiple layers of meaning that either intersect or overlap.”
“It’s monumental in its small frame and marks territory with its presence and nods to the history of sculpture as being bound with the reality of human existence.”
“I like the storytelling aspect of the piece.”
“It is too naïve. All great work of the avant-garde has offended somebody in its time.”
“It’s not that naïve. The voluptuous curves—symbols of fecundity—heighten the sculpture’s sexual tone.”
“The gaping orifice is a courageous assertion of erotic will.”
“Yet it’s so far from obscene!”
“I would add a salt shaker, a bra and a coffee cup to the piece to make a surrealistic installation representing tasteful erotic art.”
“Pleasure and cruelty are nestled like threads in a crochet.”
“I just see the touch of a female artist who is afraid of male genitalia.”
“Such a strong emotional reaction for an inanimate object!”
“An animalistic pout.”
“There is a filthy-minded frankness in the piece that make viewers feel uneasy without knowing why. “
“As a consequence of making a statement about her own sexuality, the artist is objectivizing herself, which in a culturally patriarchal society it’s up to us men to do that. She’s just taking all the fun out of it.”
“An abstract, laddish piece that can easily be named watermelon, eggs, tilapia, tuna and washing machine.”
“Yet there is an asexual demeanor that was strategically placed to avoid making enemies.”
“To measure the sculpture in its context we have to think of a venue of power—Wynwood Walls at 7rd street. “
“Such a splendid piece can easily be seen at Château de Versailles’s summer exhibition.”
“Underneath the pretty façade, there is something ominous. “
“It may be a response to Henry Darger’s figurative, cherubic hermaphrodites. “
“It’s a counterpoint to contemporary American canons about the trouble of identity and gender.”
“It stirs a dialogue about the violence in the creation of art, which has been an entirely masculine process for centuries.”
“The controversial mood of the piece may be a public relations stunt —the bigger the stench over an artistic piece, the stronger the artist becomes.”
“I don’t know if there is a humorous component in the design.”
“It could have been funny if the artist were a male. By being born a woman, she limited herself in the scope of the reactions to her work.”
“As clever as the work is, I have seen more polished pieces.”
“Yeah, we have seen better pieces, but this one is one to prevail.”
“It will be featured all over the world in copycat works.”