The Reason This Working Mother’s Breastfeeding Photo Is Going Viral Is Inspiring AF
The act of breastfeeding, particularly in public/on social media, has been a hot button topic for years — even celebs such as Mila Kunis and Chrissy Teigen have found themselves embroiled in “mom-shaming” controversy surrounding the issue.
Wait… say what?
In response to artist Marina Abramovic’s (pictured above) recent interview with Tagesspiegel, in which she said that she never wanted children and had three abortions because it would be disastrous for her work (“In my opinion, that’s the reason women aren’t as successful as men in the art world”), artist and mother Hein Ko posted a photo of herself breastfeeding her two twins, all while taking care of business.
Schooling Marina (and the rest of the world!) on how VERY possible it is to both be a mother and have career success, Hein wrote the following passage.
View this post on InstagramA post shared by Hein Koh (@hein_koh) on
“#tbt 5/19/15 when my #twins were five weeks old and despite the sleep deprivation and frequent (every two to three hours, 24/7 for 45 min at a time) breastfeeding, I was still getting sh*t done. #MarinaAbramovic thinks children hold women back in the art world, but as @dubz19 put so aptly, ‘FUKKK THAT.’ All Marina knows is her own experience, and it may be true for her, but that is not everyone’s experience nor truth. Becoming a mom (of twins no less) has personally helped me become a better #artist — I learned to be extremely efficient with my time, prioritize what’s important and let go of the rest, and #multitask like a champ. I learned to function (even if barely) on very little sleep, and out of the chaos, insanity, and even torture at times, a flood of new emotions entered into my work, becoming more interesting and layered as a result. I’m also not saying that artist parents are better artists than non-parent artists, or that choosing not to be a parent will deny you access to these learning experiences. What I am saying is that parenting is like any other challenge in life — the biggest f*cking challenge in my own life thus far — and if you embrace it and figure out creative solutions, you can emerge a better person. I think it’s important to think about the ways in which these challenges can help you move forward rather than hold you back.”
Wow. Good for Hein for speaking up for herself — and working artists/moms everywhere — with this seriously inspiring post!
Oh, and in case you were wondering? She isn’t kidding about her art being inspired by her children and finding creative solutions to problems.
Not only did she take rubber ducky to a whole new level with the chicken wire sculpture above, she also shared some helpful tips on hygiene for the busy mom: “Baby wipes come in handy when you don’t have time to take a shower,” she wrote. “#Parenting.”
#Parenting, indeed.
What do you think of Hein’s mommy-power message? Chat with us about it @BritandCo!
(h/t Elite Daily, photos via Ben Gabbe/Getty + Hein Ko)
