Bought a print I love, DH is worried it's racist

[NC4T]

Saw it on IG and loved it. Purchased it for the laundry room corridor, but it's arrived and DH is a little worried it might be racist. I can't see how. To me, it's a mum finding a few minutes of calm in the chaos and I love her babies little sleeping face.

We are white Jewish, for cultural context.

What do you think?

I haven't had a good look at the artists stuff but are there any illustrations of naked men doing household tasks or with babies?
I know there are naked men doing yoga, but I couldn't see any doing chores.

My initial visceral impression was black housemaid trying to better herself by grabbing the opportunity to educate/better herself by reading and washing her only set of clothes.

Backing a baby is done more by women who have housework to do and are walking places. In Africa... that would usually be less well off people, as the others have maids and cooks. They also have drivers and wouldn't be walking anywhere.

They wouldn't be doing the laundry either. The help does it. The women who can afford washing machines are unlikely to be the ones using them in Africa. The woman in the picture does look African to me, hairstyle included.

When it's done by Africans in the UK... it's often to get a crying baby to sleep.

I originate from Africa and have lived there and seen this.

Although the help would probably get sacked on the spot if she was found naked by the Madam of the house.

I don't like it either. I don't like the stereotype of the woman doing rhe laundry and baby rearing, and then coupled in with her nudity and skin colour and the way she is carrying the baby, strapped to her back, makes it worse.

I certainly wouldn't have it in my home and I would not think well of someone who did. If it was a range of prints they had, inc men and women, of different ethnicities, I would be fine with it, but someone choosing to display only this one in isolation, wouldn't sit well with me.

The colour or race doesn't even come into mine. For me it's irrelevant.

It's simply for me a horrible print. "Roll up roll up"let's all look at the naked woman doing rhe laundry" . Because that's what women do, right? We do the laundry. With babies strapped to our backs. That's our role in society.

And that's before you even get into the skin colour issue and the associated nudity.

The answer seems to be that if you hang this print where visitors or people staying with you will see it, some people will think it's cheesy and naff and that the artist is making use of dodgy stereotypes. Others may feel drawn to it.

It depends how much you care what other people think. If you don't want to risk the fact that some people may make negative judgements, then you could hang the picture somewhere fairly private like your bedroom. On the other hand, your husband doesn't seem to be a fan of the picture.

I like it an I don't see how it's racist?

I think it is a piece of art that can easily be misinterpreted when separated from the rest of the work, like a quote from a longer speech taken out of context.

The problem with art is it is subjective, and people will read their own interpretation of the artists intent.

I wouldn't hang this print in isolation.

I really like it!

I don't think OP ever answered if she had black friends.

How about something a bit more real?

Maybe people bring their own baggage to their interpretation of the picture.

For me (showing my age ) I immediately thought of that Levis add where the bloke strips in the launderette. Shock! Risque! All drool over trim, white body. Here nudity is placid, a moment of calm peace. The image is of a beautiful person who doesn't fit the stereotype (I love that roll of post-baby tummy).

Perhaps she's sneaking a moment to read because that's the only time she has, with a needy, refluxy baby, and a household to run, in-between the school and pre-school runs, and she won't waste that moment of precious time when the baby is finally asleep, in getting dressed.

Or maybe she got messy having fun with the baby, who's now tired out, and she slung all their clothes in the machine, and because it's a nice warm day, or she has a nice warm house, and she's chilled, happy and relaxed, she can't be bothered getting dressed.

I think it's a happy picture.

It's simply for me a horrible print. "Roll up roll up"let's all look at the naked woman doing rhe laundry" . Because that's what women do, right? We do the laundry. With babies strapped to our backs. That's our role in society.

I agree.

...and if a white friend if mine had It, I'd think very differently of her.

That's a beautiful picture, JennieLee. I'm sure it's as honest as the other, but equally open to interpretation. Is she tired or ground down? What has exhausted her? It could have been a positive experience or a negative one? Is her colour relevant?

I think it's a happy picture

Yeah, Because that's what makes women happy. Having a baby strapped to their backs and grabbing a moment to read whilst doing the laundry. Lucky her getting a couple of minutes respite from all that drudgery, eh?

The portrait I posted is by Barbara Walker.
Anyone who is interested can find out more about her at www.barbarawalker.co.uk/

I’ve been walking around today with a baby strapped to me in only my knickers btw. I’m white, and I am not impoverished hmm I’m just busy and breastfeeding grin . I can relate to this picture without a second thought about her race, I think it’s wonderful

I wonder how many of the people who relate are mothers who BF? I am, and it was my first thought.

I don't suppose bottle feeding involves a lot of getting naked?!

I can't get past 'the laundry room corridor', sorry.

t's simply for me a horrible print. "Roll up roll up"let's all look at the naked woman doing rhe laundry" . Because that's what women do, right? We do the laundry. With babies strapped to our backs. That's our role in society

Thats complete bollocks though, isn't it? There is no suggestion, form anyone anywhere, that our role in society is to do naked laundry with babies strapped to us.
I mean, nice try, but a seconds thought reveals that as purest bollocks,

I don't suppose bottle feeding involves a lot of getting naked?!

This confuses me. I admit it's been twenty years since I had my daughter, but breastfeeding in those days didn't involve taking your knickers off.

I mean, nice try, but a seconds thought reveals that as purest bollocks

Really? So why is the image not of a naked man? To pretend that laundry and child rearing isn't seen as women's work by many in society is what's bollocks.

Or maybe she got messy having fun with the baby, who's now tired out, and she slung all their clothes in the machine, and because it's a nice warm day, or she has a nice warm house, and she's chilled, happy and relaxed, she can't be bothered getting dressed.

I tend towards this more than towards thinking she's impoverished/bound in slavery/being fetishised.

Cheeky, there's an Arts and Crafts section and a Culture Vultures section under 'Fun and Games'. No specific art-commentary/critique section – which I think is a great idea – but we could always start threads in one of these?

It's simply for me a horrible print. "Roll up roll up"let's all look at the naked woman doing rhe laundry" . Because that's what women do, right? We do the laundry. With babies strapped to our backs. That's our role in society.

Well when I had a small baby and was on mat leave I did do a lot of sitting around holding the baby and doing laundry tbh.