Elaborative
Encoding (2007).
15” x 15”. Blood on
watercolor paper.
Image courtesy of
the artist.
that the wallpaper is entirely printed using my
own blood as ink. How viewers negotiate these
narrative and even technical implications varies dramatically. I have received the full gamut
of reactions, commentary, and even personal
biographies in response to such pieces. It has
been a privilege to witness that range of human
responses to the biology of the human body
through my work and through the work of others when teaching.
I am also interested in how our perceptions
of the body can be mediated by the design of
instruments and devices—how the form and
function of an object designed to relate to the
body can alter our understanding of the body
itself. There can be significant epistemological shifts that happen via the introduction of
a single new invention, instrument, or device.
Yet, at the same time objects can also reveal an
already established cultural paradigm through
their form and function. And, at a certain point,
it can seem like a chicken and egg situation in
which it’s not longer easy to trace that lineage.
One project that has interrogated such questions is Stethoscope. This sculpture was inspired
by stories of the invention of the stethoscope
24
that relate Laennec’s discomfort with a female
patient’s body as well as her discomfort with
him laying his head on her chest (the method
of auscultation prior to the stethoscope).
Laennec’s technical solution to this socially situated problem was to roll up 24 sheets of paper
creating a tube, i.e. the first stethoscope. While
his invention proved to be a superior method of
auscultation, it was an invention whose inspiration was, by such historical accounts, culturally
mediated. This is what inspired me to explore
the question “just how long can a stethoscope
be before you stop hearing the heart beat.” My
conclusion: about 25 feet. The length of the
stethoscope itself at once embodies, establishes,
and reinforces a socially appropriate distance
between doctor and patient, male and female,
disease and diagnosis.
SAiA: Much of your work has a distinct handmade, craft, domestic aesthetic juxtaposed with
the evoked scientific and medical imagery—a
good example of this is in your “Vigilant” series,
in which you create latch-hooked wall rugs of
microorganisms. Can you talk a bit about your
personal connection to these modes of working?
SciArt in America February 2014