Week 4: Medtech + Art

I view art and medicine to be very different from one another but also share some commonalities. I believe that every human being has a different perception of what art means. Some people might perceive art to be purely artistic but others might think of art to be more science oriented.

The human body and its anatomy are what bridges the gap between art and science. This traces back to the Renaissance when our ancestors first started dissecting human bodies to study human organs and its bodily functions. This was the start of a journey into medicine. Human's ever-growing curiosity has driven us to explore the human anatomy from a microscopic level, now that we have access to scans like MRI, CAT, and x-rays  With these new medical technologies, we have a better idea of how humans are programmed and how we work as a whole. Being able to explore ourselves, biologically has really opened the doors to many opportunities. The way we understand humans has allowed us to live longer, which makes us such amazing creatures. We are the only living things on earth that have control of our lives, in terms of survival. Look at it this way, everyone on this planet is a canvas and their life is a unique authentic piece of art. And being able to preserve that canvas for as long as possible, is art within itself. 
Images from Google
In Diane Gromola's TEDtalk, she speaks about her struggles with chronic pain. Later in this video, she taps into the idea of VR (virtual reality) and how it helps with relieving short-term pain just like meditation does. Her goal was not to treat short-term pain but instead, she saw this as a stepping stone to create a treatment for chronic pain. She and her colleagues made a VR with biofeedback and mindfulness meditation. This helps our inner interoceptive senses, it also highlights how big of an impact can technology have on a person's health. Like I mentioned before, I see art when we are able to mend the human body and repair it from its brokenness. I am very proud of how far we have come to keep humanity alive. 
The different uses of VR other than gaming or biofeedback.
References:
Gromala, Diane, perf. Curative Powers of Wet, Raw Beauty. 2011. Video. 29 Apr 2018. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=cRdarMz–Pw>.

“How VR in Making a Difference Medical Training and Complex Surgeries?” IACG: Creating Creators, 7 Apr. 2017, iacg.co.in/blog/virtual-reality-medicine/.

“The Art of Medicine.” DeviantArt, cleev.deviantart.com/art/The-Art-of-Medicine-574781410.

“Tree of Life Art Print by buko2.” Society6, society6.com/product/Tree-of-Life-vM6_Print.

Vesna, Victoria. “Medicine Parts 1-3.” Lecture. Web. 29 Apr. 2018.



Comments

  1. UnknownMay 1, 2018 at 10:37 PM

    Hi Kevin,

    I think the perspective you have on this topic is pretty interesting. I had similar thoughts regarding anatomy being a bridge that connects art and science. It's interesting how, now that we have all this technology that can show us what the body looks like, we forget what people did before this. Artists, like Da Vinci, had created surprisingly accurate representations of what the human body looks like and allowed for knowledge on how to properly diagnose the body and for future innovations. I like how you mentioned that technology has allowed for humans to potentially have longer lives.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Image
Event 3: Weak or No Signal The Weak or No Signal Exhibition located at the Wight Gallery at UCLA, was puzzling yet interesting. This art exhibition challenges the sightseer to think about the theme these art pieces express. I think a big factor of interpreting this exhibition was up to the viewer's imagination and using their own knowledge to aid with their interpretation. Me and one of the art pieces at the Weak or No Signal exhibit Without further ado, one of my favorite pieces of art from the exhibit was the one labeled as Apptopia. This segment of the exhibition showcased two clouds and on them projected this app-dominated world. Projected onto one of the clouds was apps doing all kinds of distinct motions and traveling from one destination to another. The other cloud was a virtual world with a robot as a building and apps moving as if they were cars. You get the message, it is an app themed art piece. This made me think back to the lecture on robotics and art. T...
Read more
Image
Week 3: Robotics + Art The topic of robotics and incorporation of machinery dates back to many years ago. Nikola Tesla and Henry Ford were significant pieces to the introduction of robotics in modern society, they had great influence on the advancement of technology. Their idea of a wireless world and assembly lines marked a pivotal point in human history. These ideas influenced and drove the vision of a modernized society. It brought about the concept of industrialization and production of machinery, which influenced the creation of movies like Metropolis  or Blade Runner. These movies heavily reflect on the fast-moving, mechanization of production during that time period. Illustration of Ford assembly lines The introduction of assembly lines was a genius idea that marked a starting point in modern society. But little did they know that assembly lines meant mass production and mass production meant that there would be a lot of replication. Walter Benjamin stated, " th...
Read more
Image
Week 9: Space + Art In my opinion, out of all the exploring humans have done, space exploration has been one of the most remarkable achievements. Copernicus a name most of us are familiar with, known to be a famous mathematician and astronomer. Copernicus came up with the heliocentric theory that illustrated the sun as the center of the solar system and with a few scientific modifications, it is the idea we all study today. His theory was just the start of space exploration. Human's endless curiosity to find answers to the unknown, in this case outer space, has led to many to come up with ridiculous visions. These visions we will be calling science fiction, were actually the backbone blueprints scientists followed and aimed for as a possible end product. Science fiction novelists like Jules Worm or Konstantin Tsiolkosvsky discussed these space stations in which floated in space that could hold living organisms (Vesna). Their creative ideas, which can be seen as a form of expressi...
Read more