Artist Marina Abramovic, recently said in an interview with a German newspaper, that having children could hamper her creativity. “I had three abortions because I was certain that it would be a disaster for my work,” she said. “One only has limited energy in the body, and I would have had to divide it.”

A Brooklyn-based artist Hein Koh responded with a beautiful picture of her working on her social media accounts while also feeding her twins. “When my twins were 5 weeks old and despite the sleep deprivation and frequent (every 2-3 hours, 24-7, 45 min at a time) breastfeeding, I was still getting shit done,” wrote Hein. “Marina Abramovic thinks children hold women back in the art world, but as @dubz19 put so aptly, “FUKKK THAT”.”

 

“Somehow as a man you are allowed to have kids and still be perceived as driven in your career,” said Hein. “While if you are a woman who has a child, people think of it as a huge sacrifice,” she observes. “The new family models are changing — mothers don’t necessarily have to be the primary caretakers anymore. With a more even distribution of responsibilities, and a support system — support is key, and I recognize it is a privilege — women can still have children and be successful in their careers.”

Read the entire message below:

#tbt 5/19/15 when my #twins were 5 weeks old and despite the sleep deprivation and frequent (every 2-3 hours, 24-7, 45 min at a time) #breastfeeding, I was still getting shit 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 & 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 fucking challenge in my own life thus far – and if you embrace it and figure out creative solutions, you can emerge a better person.  It’s important to think about the ways in which these challenges can help you move forward, rather than hold you back.  #artistmom #tandembreastfeeding #multitasking #heinkoh #greenpoint #brooklyn #nyc

A photo posted by Hein Koh (@hein_koh) on Aug 18, 2016 at 8:28am PDT