"Making The Embrace" Exhibit at MASS Design Group

In attendance with BosNOMA, I had the opportunity to witness a behind the scenes tour of the extensive process between artist Hank Willis Thomas and MASS Design Group.

The Embrace is a monumental sculpture that celebrates the beauty of African American identity and culture. The sculpture represents Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Coretta Scott King’s legacy and presence within the city of Boston. As a black person, I was deeply moved by the message behind the sculpture.

During the tour, MASS Design Group Prinicipal, Jha D Amazi, walked us through the detail oriented process that went into creating a work of this magnitude. One detail she shared is that while the piece is based on a reference image, there was not enough detail to create the hands at such a large scale. So to make up for this, Hank Willis Thomas and his wife had their hands scanned to add in the missing details. This small but powerful detail amplified the overall message of love from the installation.