Boston Common features a collection of notable monuments, but the installation of The Embrace represents a new means of connection across the region in Boston, Massachusetts. The figurative sculpture has transformed the space and community to define an icon that connects eras and audiences in a whole new way.
From Hero Worship to Collective Action
The oldest city park in the United States, Boston Common has a history and legacy that are unmatched, but it lacked any connection to civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. who had called Boston his second home. In September 2017, Paul English began to effort to create a “world-class” MLK memorial through a nonprofit called MLK Boston.
Five finalists were selected from 126 submissions, with “The Embrace” by Hank Willis Thomas being selected as the winner. Unveiled in 2023 along with the 1965 Freedom Plaza, the 20-foot tall and 25-foot wide sculpture depicts an embrace between Martin Luther King Jr. and his wife, Coretta Scott King. The positioning of the arms was taken from a photograph of the two that was taken when MLK won the Nobel Prize in 1964.
Viewed at certain angles, the interlocking arms form the shape of a heart. Audiences can walk all the way around and even through the piece, allowing them to experience it in multiple ways.
Mentioned as a memorial to their love and leadership, Thomas said that in highlighting this gesture, he wanted to shift the emphasis from singular hero worship to collective action. The sculpture has cultivated new conversations across the community about how to advance racial and social justice in Boston. The surrounding 1965 Freedom Plaza honors 69 civil rights and social justice leaders active in Greater Boston from 1950 –1975 and is designed to be a reminder of the Kings’ ideals to foster a “beloved community.”
Mentioned as a physical reflection of Boston’s diversity, the Embrace is the first significant monument to be added to Boston Common in over 100 years, highlighting the essential impact it has on the surrounding space and community.
A Memorial to Love and Leadership
By creating a figurative and literal memorial to love and leadership, audiences can “stand in the heart of their hug” of The Embrace, enabling people to experience the sculpture and space in a way that resonates on multiple levels. These experiences represent larger conversations and connections that have taken place across the community and beyond, compelling interest and engagement in a space that would otherwise be empty.
