Embodied: An Anatomical Exploration of Inner Narrative
Exhibition dates: October 7 - 14, 2021
The Most Important Tool, charcoal and colored pencil on paper, 2021
You Can’t Trust The Tap Water, graphite and colored pencil on paper, 2021
Touch Starved, graphite on paper, 2021
It Never Healed Right, graphite on paper, 2021
Artist Statement
Medical illustration has always been used as a way of conveying factual information about the body. It is a sterile, clinical form of art that rarely has a concept beyond its purpose in the STEM field. Prior to modern medical technology, it was assumed that the sources of our emotions were different organ systems within the body. This collection of research explores how anatomical structures could be used as a form of visual metaphor to represent emotional narratives. It lays out the process through which different organ systems represent and channel their own respective types of feelings. These claims are substantiated via research into the medical field, as well as case studies investigating the visceral/physical effects of emotional vulnerability. This series of work is intended to give conceptual meaning to the otherwise sterile associations we have with medical illustration, and recontextualize science to explore sentiment. Put simply, it represents the literal embodiment of feeling.
Darby Mitchell Installation View
