Medicine, Technology, and Art
In t
he Renaissance, art was strongly focused on trying to
capture human anatomy accurately. Thus, “as European artists turned towards
more lifelike portrayals of the human body, they needed a deeper understanding
of how the structures of the body worked together” (sciencemuseum.org). That is
why scientists and artists worked together during this time period (and were
often one and the same).Renaissance Anatomy Art |
X-Ray Art is a good
example of an artistic medium where artists have taken advantage of a medical
technology. This piece, by Nick Veasey, shows our connection to technology
because both the microphone and the headphones look similar to our skeletal
structure, as if they could be natural appendages to our bodies.
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Nick Veasey's X-Ray Art |
Silivia Casini writes that “even a single MRI image might be
considered to be a portrait or self-portrait” (Casini, 89). Thus, artists have
also begun to make use of MRIs to make art that expresses themselves and
others. I think that this piece uses MRI technology to express angst.
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MRI Art |
After learning about how MRI machines are used to make art,
I began to wonder how they worked. I learned that MRIs shoot electromagnetic
radiation at specific frequencies to see certain types of tissue. This is how
MRIs are able to see soft tissue, like muscles, while X-Ray machines can only
see bones.
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Robot Assisted Surgery |
I also became very interested in robot assisted surgery,
since this technology seems to build off last week’s lecture. Robots can
duplicate the hand motions of a surgeon, and can this allow “a specialist to
operate on a patient who is very far away without either of them having to
travel” (allaboutrobocsurgery.com). However, they are still prohibitively expensive
for most applications.
"All About Robotic
Surgery." Surgical Robots, Robotic Surgery, Robotic Systems. Web. 27 Apr. 2015.
<http://allaboutroboticsurgery.com/surgicalrobots.html>.
Casini, Silvia.
"Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) as Mirror and Portrait: MRI
Configurations between Science and the Arts." Configurations: 73-99. Print.
Gould, RT-(R)(MR)(ARRT),
and Molly Edmonds. HowStuffWorks.
HowStuffWorks.com. Web. 27 Apr. 2015.
<http://science.howstuffworks.com/mri5.htm>.
"History of Robotic
Surgery." History of Robotic Surgery. Web. 27
Apr. 2015.
<http://www.laparoscopyhospital.com/history_of_robotic_surgery.htm>.
"Robot-assisted
Surgery." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Web. 27 Apr. 2015.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robot-assisted_surgery>.
"Science Museum.
Brought to Life: Exploring the History of Medicine." Art
and Anatomy. Web. 27 Apr. 2015.
<http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/broughttolife/themes/understandingthebody/anatomy.aspx>
"Sylvie
Guillems." X Ray Art. Web. 27 Apr. 2015.
<http://sylvieguillems.blogspot.com/2010/06/x-ray-art.html>.
"Vesalius's Renaissance Anatomy Lessons." Vesalius's Renaissance Anatomy Lessons. Web. 27 Apr. 2015. <http://www.bl.uk/learning/artimages/bodies/vesalius/renaissance.html>.
Web. 27 Apr. 2015.
<http://picslist.com/image/29065540172>.
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