In the video lecture about prosthetic limbs, I was reminded of a
plane ride I took last week with a team of nationally ranked wheelchair basketball
players. While sitting in the middle seat between two of the players, their
prosthetics lying under their chairs, I learned that nearly every player on the
team met in Camp Pendleton’s hospital after IED and spinal injuries. They also
told me that over the last few years, the comfortability and functionality of prosthetics
has made huge improvements, and they are much less expensive thanks to 3D
printing technology and the production of cheaper materials. I was amazed that
the combination of art, technology and medicine could result in something both
aesthetically impressive to onlookers, and life-changing for so many people. 
The video lectures address the fascination with
the human body that seems to span all cultures and generations. I was reminded
of Rick Genest, sometimes known as “Zombie Boy”, who I watched an interview of
a few years ago. He has gained notoriety for his head to toe tattoos of ribs, cartilage,
arteries and muscles drawn over where they would be beneath his skin. The
permanence of these tattoos is testimony to a continued fascination with the
human body in our world today. Genest was willing to display what he found to
be an expression of himself and his passions.
“It’s creativity, and it comes from the soul.”
This is what Genest said in an interview about his “walking art” and his recent
involvement in TV episodes, fashion shoots and live performances.
Between the Bodies Exhibits that continue to
garner support, the human fascination with preservation and praising of the
body as a work of art, and Rico the Zombie Boy, there is something inexplicably
dark, alluring, fascinating and mysterious about the human body and its
presence within art, science and medicine today.
Video Links:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmeELC5EGv4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmeELC5EGv4
"MoMA Learning." MoMA. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Apr. 2016.
"U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE Media Photo Gallery." U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE Media Photo Gallery. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Apr. 2016.
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