Don't Just Lie There, Mom!by
cloudsmeComment: Based on the comments I recieved on this photo, some of you were offended or disturbed by i t. I would like to explain what my intentions of the photo were.
I was trying to portray the conflict a mother has in dealing with her children. She has her body, which is changed by pregnancy and breast feeding children. She has her freedom, which is lost to a tremendous degree. Her time is not her own anymore. Her sexuality is harder to find. Still, she loves her children, and feels the sacrafice is worth it. However, she looks foward to the day when the children are older, and she will regain some of what is lost. In the meantime, she tries to steal a few moments in the sun to relax and tan and maybe feel sexy for a while. Along comes the child, demanding her attention, with total disregard for her privacy, body, sexuality, and peace. She, of course, gives up her moment in the sun, and lovingly attends to her child.
This is my wife, and 4 year old child. I didn't place the childs hands, they just ended up there. Of course a 4 year old has no overt thoughts of sexuality (yes, I've read Freud). Hands often end up in the wrong place with children. This played into the point of the photo, so I left it in the photo. I shot from a low point of view, to try to make the child more of an imposing, scary figure. The mischevous expression was a plus as well. The fence between mom and the wide open ocean was chosen as a metaphor for the conflict.
The photo was meant to be uncomfortable. I think most of the tension comes from the conflict between mom's sexuality, and the childs total disregard for it. If you were offended by it, that was not my intention and I apologise.
Photographer found comment helpful.
