Adam Hughes blames us for our reactions.

[yendi]

Adam Hughes, artist behind the infamous MJ in a Thong statue, defends himself by noting that, well, golly gee, he didn't mean to craft a ho:

"Is it really a sexist or misogynistic act if it wasn’t intended that way on the part of the people doing it?"

Well, I'm convinced. Surely, unless an artist explicitly declares that he's committing an act of sexism, it's not. Oh no. Why, I bet that some of his best friends are women!

He also does a nice job scoring bingo points, noting that lots of women and feminists tell him how great he is, and that this is the "meanest" he's ever seen this sort of reaction.

Also, media reactions are purely based on wanting to spin this into a big story for money. Why does The Man have to hate poor Adam Hughes so much?

Seriously, I had sympathy for him at the beginning of this (when the sculptors at Sideshow were supposedly to blame, and it was Sideshow that was deleting all comments complaining about it from their site)), but at this point, I've pretty much lost it.

(link ganked from stevietee)

Comments

[lokilokust.livejournal.com]

what the fuck.
what a fucking piece of shit.

[alladinsane.livejournal.com]

Very Clintonian...define "sexist"...define "misogynist"...Vast Big Media Conspiracy...yep all there...

[robyn-ma.livejournal.com]

Is it weird that I look at this and the previously infamous Supergirl statue and the first thing I notice is the hair?

Then again, pretty much the first thing I notice on real live people is their hair. But I'm especially interested in how it's depicted in a sculpt.

I can say the hair on MJ and Supergirl is really cute. Beyond that I've been told I'm supposed to be outraged by the anatomy and/or pose, but I'm just...not. Is the institutionalized cheesecakization of female characters in comics annoying and sexist? Absolutely. It needs to be addressed. So do a lot of things in comics, starting with the fact that white males primarily write them and draw them, and so we're getting white male fantasy a lot of the time. This is also true of just about every other mass medium, not to downplay the extent of it in mainstream comics. I'm just saying the problem goes deeper than just comics and Adam Hughes.

I should also note I don't traffic much in superhero comics these days, and nobody in comics is more stacked than Luba in Love & Rockets; then again, few women in comics have been as complexly written, either.

[puppetmaker40.livejournal.com]

I can't comment on any of this having known Adam since he was a teenager. He had been best buddies with my brother and his wife for years. All I can say is that this is such a tempest in a teapot and it is getting stirred by the internet and the media making much more of it than it is. The statue is not to my taste but then I accept that not all art work is going to appeal to me.

[yendi]

*nod* It's not simple when one knows the folks involved, and I've never been a fan of some of the debates (in other fan/pro areas) that are attempting to force folks to criticize or explicitly defend friends.

[yendi]

I'm just saying the problem goes deeper than just comics and Adam Hughes.

Honestly, if it didn't, there wouldn't be much of an issue here at all.

[texmorgan.livejournal.com]

It's times like this I wish the guy would just balls up and say "Hell yeah, look at the rack on that baby and damn can she worth that ass."

[asim.livejournal.com]

OMYGOD.

This sucks on top of sucking with a big creme de la suck on top.

Lo, How The Mighty Have Fallen (from my approval).

[texmorgan.livejournal.com]

Also, I would like to Kirsten Dunst for anything henceforth Spiderman related.

An example:
"Did you see Spiderman 3?"
"Nope."
"Why not?"
"I heard it sucked and it has Kirsten Dunst."
"Yeah, she ruins everything."
"Did you see Spiderman 2 at least? It was really good."
"Still has Kirsten Dunst and even Alfred Molina can't balance that out."

Fast forward a few years:
"Did you see Marie Antoinette 2?"
"Kirsten Dunst sucks but it was great to see her head lobbed off and then put back on just to get lobbed off again. I could watch that scene on loop for hours."

[asim.livejournal.com]

I accept that not all art work is going to appeal to me.

I understand. I even defended Adam (http://yendi.livejournal.com/1272140.html?thread=9529420#t9529420) initially, based upon a number of factors. At the same time, with this article, I think Adam is being, at best, naive about the commentary, loud and obnoxious as it can be. Anger is like that, sometimes, sadly.

However. This statement of yours is similar, in my mind, as to how people defend various other offensive commentary. Everyone has the right to do this art, of course. But said right also allows people to discuss it, even in a highly negative light. And yes, there is a point where the much-maligned "PC" stops, and actual harm to a group begins. I think the status hits it, and that it's not just about the statue, but about the overall state of women in the comics industry, and how the statue reflects it.

By itself, the statue is just...tacky and tasteless. But put it with the other acts where women are marginalized in comics. And this is the real point: the statue is flash point of a trend of such actions, and that trend is accelerating. It's harmful not just women, but to the comics industry as a whole.

Does that make sense?

[amokk]

Duh, yendi, you just took it the wrong way. Gah.

Again, not a True Fan!

[yendi]

I liked her in Drop Dead Gorgeous, actually.

[yendi]

I see where you're coming from, and it puppetmaker40 had just used the line you quoted, I'd be on your page. But given her family's close relationship with AH, I think it's perfectly valid (and probably a hell of a lot less emotionally draining) for her to want to step back and away from discussing the statue.

[songwind.livejournal.com]

While I know that the subjects being raised by this situation are serious, and there is real meat to the various points to ponder...

my first reaction to everyone of these posts is, "You know, my wife does my laundry in a thong."

[asim.livejournal.com]

yendi is correct. Please accept my apologies.

[asim.livejournal.com]

yendi is correct. Please accept my apologies.

[emilytheslayer.livejournal.com]

That just means you're lucky.

[songwind.livejournal.com]

Plus she's a complete control freak about the washing machine.

[texmorgan.livejournal.com]

You know I remember watching that film and really liking it but I don't remember anything about Kirsten Dunst in it. Denise Richards on the other hand, I do. I think that has more to do with the fact I was dating a girl at the time that looked exactly like Denise Richards but a little more top heavy.

[texmorgan.livejournal.com]

or his wife uses thongs as her laundry day pair.