Monument to Pro-Life: The Birth of Sean Preston, a sculpture depicting pop singer and celebrated mom Britney Spears in the buff, crouching while having her son Sean Preston, has invited flak from both pro-life campaigners and abortion lobbyists.
The sculpture, which is to be unveiled in Capla Kesting Art Gallery in April, shows a very pregnant Spears on a bear skin rug. Sculpted by Daniel Edwards, the monument would be exhibited between April 7 and 23.
David Kesting, who co-owns the gallery, said pro-life campaigners found the sculpture demeaning to their cause, while pro-choice campaigners saw it as an objection to their aim. He said the protestors sent over 3,000 emails and objections from all kinds of places. Calls came from Tokyo, England, and France. “Some people are upset that Britney is being used for this subject matter. Others who are pro-life thought this was degrading to their movement. And some pro-choice people were upset that this is a pro-life monument,” he said.
Robert Jaffe, a spokesman for NARAL Pro-Choice New York, said that the sculpture made a mockery of pro-life campaigns. “What's ironic is you have a very sexualized piece of art and opponents of abortion are by and large opposed to modern-day society's approach to sex,” he said.
But Lincoln Capla, the other owner of the gallery, dismissed the flak. “There is so much ignorance behind the people that are interested in Britney Spears that they don't have the capacity to appreciate or evaluate any work of art,” he said.
Meanwhile, Edwards defended his choice of Spears as the pro-life role model. “When I saw an image of her, I thought she was quite a beautiful pregnant woman. But I also thought that there was something more to all the stories about her. And I figured there must be this pro-life undercurrent,” he said, lauding Spears for her decision to take a sabbatical from her successful career to have a baby, that too at a young age of 24.
“I searched for other candidates, but anyone more wholesome was older. She sacrificed her career at a young age to have a child, and that meant a lot to me. I admire her. This is an idealized figure. Everyone is coming at me with anger and venom, but I depicted her as she has depicted herself – seductively. Suddenly, she's a mom,” Edwards added.
He also defended her being spotted driving with Sean Preston on her lap. “When I grew up, your dad would drive with you on his lap. There were no seat belt laws when I was a kid,” said the 40-year-old father of three children.
Edwards, however, admitted that he had never met Spears and had used images and sculptures of her to create his artwork. Spears' publicist Leslie Sloane Zelnik was unavailable for comment on the sculpture, which would be displayed along with pro-life material provided by the Manhattan Right To Life Committee.
To prevent any untoward incidents, security would be tightened at the gallery. But entry would be free for those who want a look.
