'Eggs Benedict' is a protest in condoms

April 17 2013 - In News

There are a lot of portraits of the former Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. The one artist Niki Johnson made is causing a stir. From far away her piece, called ‘Eggs Benedict' looks like a contemporary portrait of Pope Benedict, made of textile. But when you come closer you can see it's made out of 17,000 non-lubricated condoms. 

"What I did was interstuff them and fold them to create this tonal range,” the artist said. Standing at almost 7 feet tall and 5 feet wide, the colorful latex-lined piece is the latest installment by the Shorewood artist and Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design (MIAD) instructor. It’s been a work in progress for the last three years. 

The idea of the popes portrait in condoms came when she heard a remark made by the former pope made on a trip in Africa. “He said promoting condoms would help increase the spread of AIDS, and I was just dumbfounded.  I couldn’t make any sense of that statement, so I figured I needed to do something,” said Johnson. So she came up with the idea of a condom made portrait and hopes it gets people talking about  safe sex, sexuality, and world leaders.

'Eggs Benedict' will be on display for public, likely up to May 28th, at the Portrait Society Gallery on 201 E. Buffalo, in Milwaukee’s 3rd Ward.

Source: Huffingtonpost