Yusef Woodruff
Atlanta
“I first saw it from a comedian on Instagram. It was actually very hilarious, seeing what it was perceived as, and it definitely looked like someone was going down… But it’s dope though. I think it is a dope idea but I think the artist should have added more of the arm so it actually looks like you are holding on to somebody. But it looks hilarious right now.”
Chanel Angelique
Atlanta
“I thought that the sculpture, from certain angles, was not flattering. I appreciate what the artist was trying to do. It’s just that the angle that I initially saw it at was a little bit jarring for me. I had to look at the inspiration photo, at all angles, and I did like it from some angles.”
Charly Palmer
Atlanta
“I’m an artist. When I first saw the sculpture, I thought it was beautiful. I thought it was powerful. I didn’t necessarily see it from all angles but at no point did I think of anything other than a tribute to The Embrace. But now that I see it, I can’t unsee it. But y’all have got to get your dirty minds out of the way and look at it for what it is: artistic expression.”
Amyiesha Henry
Stone Mountain
“My first impression of the statue was perplexed. I didn’t really know what it was at first. I looked at the 360 of it and it looked like arms holding a butt. It wasn’t until I read an article that I realized it was supposed to pay homage to the MLK family. But once I took a look at it and I looked at the reference photo that he used, I was okay. This makes sense. But disembodied arms was a little bit crazy to take in at first. Once you understand what it is supposed to be about, it’s okay.”
Rashad Andre
Atlanta
“I felt like it was a little bit too artistic depending on the way your eye is fixated on the sculpture, interpreting it as something else. When you’re doing captures of someone, someone’s image and likeness, sometimes it’s better to keep it real simple and not be a little ‘too artistic’ because it can definitely have the wrong interpretation. The intent was probably good but the results kind of missed the mark.”
Compiled by Vincent Christie