Genius? Artist makes Pope portrait from condoms (PHOTOS)

For 25-year-old artist Niki Johnson’s latest piece, “Eggs Benedict,” the medium is most definitely the message.

A portrait of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI that is made out of 17,000 condoms, the inspiration for Johnson’s subject and materials came after hearing the now-retired Pope deliver a speech on AIDS while on a 2009 tour of Africa.

“I would say that this problem of AIDS cannot be overcome merely with money, necessary though it is,” Benedict remarked. “If there is no human dimension, if Africans do not help, the problem cannot be overcome by the distribution of prophylactics: on the contrary, they increase it.”

To Johnson’s ears, the Pope’s message was that promoting the use of condoms actually increased the prevalence of HIV infection. Appalled, she eventually conceived a way to channel her disagreement, and began amassing thousands of colorful condoms.

 

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nikileejohnson.wordpress.com/

Johnson stitched together the multi-colored latex condoms, creating a vibrant final product.

“His words required an intervention of some kind,” Johnson told the Daily News.

After months of opening, unrolling, and stitching together the condoms in what she calls a kind of “embroidery,” Johnson’s portrait came to life just as Benedict announced he was retiring as the head of the Catholic Church.

“At first, I was a little freaked out,” Johnson said. “I had to step back and think about the project. But then I realized that it didn’t matter that he was retiring. What he’d said about condoms was part of his legacy.”

Johnson is now putting the finishing touches on Eggs Benedict in preparation for a forthcoming show at Milwaukee’s Portrait Society Gallery, and in retrospect, she thinks the timing of the papal succession may have helped bring more attention to the artwork.

 

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www.nikijohnson.com

“Eggs Benedict” is meant to be viewed from the font as well as the back, where the open ends of the condoms give the portrait a more abstract feel.

News organizations in countries as far away as Germany and Ghana have written articles about the portrait, and, inevitably, she has heard more than a few angry responses to the piece.

“I know the piece is controversial, but I don’t consider it hateful,” Johnson said. “When you make works like this you realize that controversy is just part of it.”

Johnson said she hopes Eggs Benedict will further a dialog about the value of condoms.

“As an artist my purpose is to create a conversation and foster debate,” Johnson said, especially when it comes to the statements on condoms made by the man she has artfully rendered using thousands of the prophylactics.

“The bottom line is that condoms promote sexual health and prevent disease,” Johnson said.

Read more: NY Daily News

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