I was particularly interested in this week’s topic because I am fascinated by medicine, and aspire to go to nursing school.  Therefore the topic this week was one that I could relate to.  In watching the lecture the first example that caught my attention was the discussion of the Body Worlds exhibition of the bodies on display after undergoing the plastination process.  The reason that this caught my attention is because it reminded me of one of the incidents that first sparked my interest in medicine.  When I was in high school I went to an exhibit in Sacramento, CA called Bodies Revealed, which is very similar to the Body Worlds exhibition discussed in lecture.  I feel that this is a great example of medicine and art, using real human bodies as both exhibitions for artistic and academic purposes.  This is one of my favorite displays from the exhibition, showing the circulatory system:

(http://www.premierexhibitions.com/exhibitions/14/14/bodies-revealed/gallery-bodies-revealed) 

(https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/ca/81/85/ca8185982ed7b42c562072e14384310a.jpg) 

As I touched upon in my first blog, art and medicine can be very powerful in conjunction.  There are studies related to nursing students benefitting from studying art, improving observation skills and helping medical professionals to avoid bias (DePaul University).  But even more so medicine and art working together can be very powerful.  The modern day Hippocratic Oath states, “I will remember that there is art to medicine as well as science, and that warmth, sympathy, and understanding may outweigh the surgeon's knife or the chemist's drug” (Tyson).  Art can be used in medicine to create useful, accurate and aesthetically pleasing diagrams such as below: 

(http://laughingsquid.com/wp-content/uploads/SkeletonTypogram_AaronKuehn_A4.jpg)

(http://www.drawingonanatomy.com.au/galleryD/images/Drawingbow-2.jpg)

However there are some ethical issues related to the combination of art and medicine.  For example, the exhibits that I discussed above of the bodies that were on display were scrutinized for not having proper documentation of permission for the use of the bodies.  One of these organizations appeared to have legitimate permission, but the other did not (Ulaby).

Another example of art and medicine being taken to an extreme can be seen in plastic surgery.  In lecture we discussed a woman named Orlan who underwent very extreme plastic surgery as a display of art (“Orlan”).  Another extreme example of this is a man who underwent many surgeries to look like Superman. 

(http://www.creative-mapping.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Contoversial-Artist-Orlan-Operation-Omnipresence-interview-by-Creative-Mapping-1024x667.jpg)

Works Cited:

-DePaul University. "Art helps nursing, medical students strengthen observation skills." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 31 March 2015. Web. 23 April 2015. 

-“Man gets surgery to look like Superman.” Online Video Clip. YouTube. YouTube, 22 Oct. 2011. Web. 23 April 2015.

-“Orlan – Carnal Art (2001) Documentary.” Online Video Clip. YouTube. YouTube, 13 Mar. 2011. Web. 23 April 2015. 

-Tyson, Peter. “The Hippocratic Oath Today.” PBS. PBS, 27 Mar. 2001. Web. 23 April 2015.

-Ulaby, Neda. “Origins of Exhibited Cadavers Questioned.” NPR. NPR, 11 Aug. 2006. Web. 23 April. 2015.