Monstrous Birth, UTA Studio Art Center, polyethylene, fishnet, rope, 132″ x 52″ x 31″ (variable), 2009

In the process of adding explanations for older work, I’ve realized there are some omissions and this is one of them. I’m surprised I didn’t document it before, since it was an important piece for me that initiated a whole series of work using plastic envelopes filled with air or helium as a visual representation for all sorts of bodily situations, particularly controversial ones. The whole idea of a Monstrous Birth was sparked for me by a news item people were discussing (read, “arguing about”) at the time. A Deaf lesbian couple had decided to have a child using a Deaf man as a sperm donor. They were trying to find out if there was a way they could determine before birth if the child was Deaf or not. If they were able to determine that the child was hearing, they planned to abort because they only wanted a Deaf baby. People, of course, were outraged at the idea of someone aborting a “perfectly good baby.” The irony that seemed to be totally lost on most people was that if the situation had been reversed, a hearing couple seeking to determine before birth if their child was Deaf or not, I don’t think the reaction would have been the same. I think a lot of people would have been quite supportive of someone deciding not to bring a Deaf child into the world. Of course this is a powder keg of a discussion in a number of different ways.

I had my children before my own hearing loss started. Even then, I was told (possibly incorrectly), that my condition was not heritable. My daughter did develop hearing loss in her 20s. Would I have still had her if I had known? Hell, yes.

Note: I discovered I DID post a photo of this piece (Nov. 1, 2015), but I posted it without comment, so I am going to leave this duplication here. Also, someone later told me that the situation with the expectant couple had been a hoax. I don’t know – but people’s reactions were real. Watch “The Black Stork,” a 1917 movie about eugenic infanticide, if you can find a copy, or read anything written by Peter Singer, for more discussion on the topic.