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silicone fiberglass
Currently on view at Mint Museum--UPTOWN
Gift of the Tony Podesta Collection
About Big Mother, Piccinini writes: “Ironically, I didn‘t grow up in an environment with a lot of animals around me, but for me, the essence of life is to nurture and be nurtured, and that is something that cuts across species. Whenever I see animals nurturing their infants, it reinforces that idea, which is really strong in Big Mother. One [story] I heard from a friend was about their baby sister being abducted by a grieving baboon. Often when baboons lose their babies, they really grieve, and they actually continue to carry the dead infant around with them until it disintegrates in their arms. It seems that this particular baboon mother was grieving so badly that she decided to take a human baby to replace her lost child. To me, this story tells us that in the face of grief, and the pain of losing a child, the differences between different species aren’t that important. We have more in common in the love for children than we differ genetically—and even then, the genetic differences are actually pretty tiny. I find this really beautiful.”
Accession Number: 2014.75.18
Measurements:
Copyright Information:
NEPL Mint signed nonexclusive license with artist
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