Week 4 | Medicine + Technology + Art | Maya Srinivasan

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The relationship between medicine, technology, and art is a concept I have not explored before this class. However, after reading more into this subject, I realized that these fields are more connected than I previously thought. Bringing together art and medicine has proven to be a deeply personal experience for many individuals. As Professor Vesna explains in her lectures, the human body has been studied in both an artistic and scientific manner for thousands of years, with art schools still emphasizing the importance of understanding anatomy (Vesna). Additionally, a Stanford Medicine article describes how a particular patient combined her love of art with her recent diagnosis. The article shows that, "her work makes a difference because it opens up conversations about issues that are typically so private, so taboo and yet so pervasive in our society" (MacCormick). 


Medicine and the Arts: Humanizing Healthcare

Although I have never undergone an MRI, it was fascinating to hear about Silvia Casini's experiences with this form of medical technology. When speaking about MRIs and their connections to art, she notes that "the appeal of brain imaging as a technique of self-portrait is powerful for an audience outside the medical field, because the information is conveyed through image" (Casini 75). The act of seeing your body from a viewpoint that isn't visible to the naked eye is transformative for some and can open doors to a deeper understanding of one's body. Donald Ingber's work on 'tensegrity' displays a similar sentiment, as he writes that "the question of how living things form has less to do with chemical composition than with architecture" (49). Both authors essentially argue that the human body is more than just a tool for studying medicine; rather, it has values and properties that are worth observing from an artistic viewpoint. 

MRI artwork of a patient having a stroke

We can see the use of medicine as a form of art in more than just paintings and sculptures; television shows and films revolving around this topic have become immensely popular in recent years. Shawn Thomas describes that "the content of medical shows has great potential to steer viewers’ understanding of health topics," and I believe the same can be said for viewers' understanding of art. Although many may be taken aback by health-related images, the lectures and readings for this week showcase the beauty of the human body. 

Painting of surgery 


References: 

Casini, Silvia. “Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) as Mirror and Portrait: MRI Configurations between Science and the Arts.” Configurations, vol. 19, no. 1, 2011, pp. 73–99., https://doi.org/10.1353/con.2011.0008. 

Ingber, Donald E. “The Architecture of Life.” Scientific American, vol. 278, no. 1, 1998, pp. 48–57., https://doi.org/10.1038/scientificamerican0198-48. 

“Lecture 1.” Performance by Victoria Vesna, YouTube, UCLA, 2012, https://bruinlearn.ucla.edu/courses/129896/pages/unit-4-view?module_item_id=4852512. Accessed 2022. 

Levine, Susan, and Steve Reid . “Medicine and the Arts .” FutureLearn, University of Cape Town, 2022, https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/medicine-and-the-arts. 

MacCormick, Author Holly, et al. “Patient Advocate Uses MRI Scans to Create Art and Spark Conversations about Life with Illness.” Scope, Stanford Medicine, 17 Oct. 2018, https://scopeblog.stanford.edu/2018/10/16/patient-advocate-uses-mri-scans-to-create-art-and-spark-conversations-about-life-with-illness/. 

Pasieka, Alfred. “Stroke, MRI Brain Scan, Artwork .” Science Photo Library, 2022, https://www.sciencephoto.com/media/659102/view/stroke-mri-brain-scan-artwork. 

Seal, Andrew, et al. “The Art of Medicine.” Thechangingpalette, 15 Apr. 2016, https://thechangingpalette.com/2016/04/15/the-art-of-medicine/. 

Thomas, Shawn. “The Past, Present, and Future of Medical Television.” Literature Arts Medicine Magazine, NYU, 6 Apr. 2022, https://medhum.med.nyu.edu/magazine/archives/42103. 


Comments

  1. amaan-hassanali-DESMA9April 21, 2022 at 2:37 PM

    Hey Maya! I was just skimming through the various blogs and came across this post. I must say, I found your thoughts on medtech and art quite intriguing. Specifically, you mention the MRI and its ability to doctors to diagnose patients using an image. When I was younger, I had an MRI done and I remember being so surprised when I saw my abdominal tissues in the resulting images. It's crazy to think that our bodies contain so much that our naked eye cannot perceive but with art, we have somewhat of a lens through which we may see deeper. It is at times like these that I remember the famous quote: "Earth without art is just eh?" After all, without these images, doctors may not be able to diagnose us, or they may misdiagnose us, and we might just end up worse off. Now then, I'd like to leave you with an interesting question: Are doctors artists in disquise or merely the users of the work of artists? Thank you for your post and keep up the good work!

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