Mother's Milk

This is cover of the Red Hot Chili Peppers album that represents a mother as both a nurturer and as a sexual being. The woman on the cover is cradling the band members in her arms, keeping them safe between her breasts and presumably nuturing her with her milk. She is also highly sexualized. Her breasts are bare and sexually depicted with the flower covering the nipple. She is looking down on a band member with an expression that is not entirely sexual, but not entirely maternal either. The juxtiposition of sexuality, rock and roll, and motherhood is jarring. I like this image because it challenges how we think about mothers. Mothers are typically depicted at nurturing and loving but never sexual. It is as if once you become a mother you lose your sexuality and sex appeal.