Week Four: Medical Technology and Art

'Bling DNA' 

This course has made me reflect on the basis of what is truly art. Art is not just paintings of still life and portraits, art is what invokes the human spirit, our inner most questions and desires, a representation of our unbounded curiosity.  As seen throughout history, humans have had an intrinsic desire to understand themselves, both mentally and physically. With past and present advances in technology, we come closer and closer to truly understanding the makeup of our being.

Kevin Warwick's progression in his pieces shows what art can do for medical technology. Using himself as a subject to create art pieces, as well as impact other's lives, Warwick has impacted the medical community with '“the most significant recent advance in biomedical engineering”' (Warwick). This showed me that art provides a medium of organic creativity, which allows the unimaginable to become reality. Because of artists' creativity, many scientific fields have benefitted and have been influenced by works of art. 

Microtubule fibers with molecular
motors dynein and kinesin

Art can also serves as a different presentation of knowledge. Drew Barry's work Body Code," was designed for museum and art gallery exhibition, with the goal of reaching public audiences who do not usually seek out or are exposed to the details of scientific knowledge" (Barry). This artwork allows for completely different audiences to become educated and gain knowledge in a different location, and in a way that may be more effective or interesting for them. Seeing biology displayed in a way completely different from that of a textbook gave me a different depth in many different biological concepts. Art shows a different view of a certain knowledge, and to truly understand a topic, all perspectives must be considered. 

Casini, Silvia. “Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) as Mirror and Portrait: MRI Configurations Between Science and Arts.” (n.d.): n. pag. Web. 26 Oct. 2012.

Kevin Warwick, www.kevinwarwick.com/.

“Kevin Warwick, World's First ‘Cyborg," on Artificial Intelligence.” Becoming SuperHuman, 30 Nov. 2017, becomingasuperhuman.com/kevin-warwick-worlds-first-cyborg-on-artificial-intelligence/.

Vesna, Victoria. “Medicine Parts 1-3.” Lecture. Web. 26 Oct. 2012

Walter, and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research. “Body Code.” Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, 12 Sept. 2017, www.wehi.edu.au/wehi-tv/body-code.