Haha, the statement by the artist in that article sounds like it's being read at gunpoint, like in a hostage video.
"The Native American woman figure wears the clothing I had originally planned for her," --grimace--"before our original model expressed a desire to wear her spiritually significant garments."
Masked gunman gestures with gun, indicating that she continue
"And of course, we changed the young girl who was kneeling so that her pose is now reminiscent of..." --breathes deeply, trying to summon the strength-- "Colin Kaepernick. I hope this is useful.”
I really wish the article explained what the criticisms were. The differences between the two versions are lost on me. And there is way more diversity in either version than I experienced growing up there. I'm pretty sure I didn't meet a black person until I was in high school. There were probably a total of 6 POC at Mt. Ararat while I was there and they were mostly Navy brats.
I get that representation matters, especially in Maine since it is rife with casual racism. But Maine is super white, and I know that has changed in some parts of the state. But even Brunswick is still super white.
Runnah5555 t1_j8rgxvi wrote
I would rather eat broken glass than try to design a mural by committee.