Week 4:Medicine + Technology + Art

April 26, 2024

    As a 34-year-old student of architecture at UCLA, and a veteran, I do have some different experience. There have been some experiences with medical technologies—military and not—that have been a part and parcel throughout my life as a parent. But that cross-section of experiences embeds within me the way I look at technology integrated into human life, an interesting area interestingly explored by a number of artists.

    This week, I delved into different projects that interweave medical technologies with artistic investigation. One of the projects that really resonated with me was Patricia Olynyk's "Dark Skies." Dark Skies is a multimodal installation referring to themes of biology and physiology in relation to the enhancement of sensory perception (About "Dark Skies").

Figure 1. Patricia Olynyk's "Dark Skies"

    Olynyk's work with Sung Ho Kim and Christopher Ottinger turns on complex images and sounds for thought about our biological and psychological needs—themes that are acutely personal to anyone familiar with medical interventions. Another fascinating research comes from Ellen Levy's work, who intelligently synthesizes complex systems theory with visual art. Her study "Stealing Attention" on visual systems and cognitive processes discusses the influence of issues and factors deriving from environments outside of us on our perception and focus.

Figure 2. Ellen Levy's study "Stealing Attention"

    Levy's examination of attention resonates with one's personal experiences of the disorienting effects of sensory overload, be it in combat or in noisy child-filled homes. Applications of medical technology in such art projects not only meet traditional uses but even get beyond them to enter the sphere of enhancement or questioning our sensory experiences and behavior within our surroundings. This approach opens my eyes not only to what medical technologies are capable of but also strengthens my studies in architecture because the creation of sensory experiences within space is one of its major elements.

Figure 3. Complex system in arts

    From the veteran's point of view, the projects illustrated by the Sensory War team are showing what could be possible in medical technology for conditions like PTSD and sensory impairment that are so prevalent in the military community. The idea of using art as a form for exploring and perhaps even relieving these states gives the viewer a fresh perspective from within conventional medical routes. In sum, then, the following projects reviewed this week, wherein medical technologies are integrated into art, offer a profound commentary on the human condition. I suppose that the growth of digital health technologies challenges us to regard them not as instruments for improving or helping the body but as devices that will be engaging in psychological and sensorial experience. Here, you can find more interesting readings on how art meets medical technology.

Reference

Olynyk, P., et al. Synthesizing Fields: Art, Complexism and the Space Beyond Now, 2016, Technoetic Arts: A Journal of Speculative Research.

International Dark Skies Association. What is light pollution?, https://darksky.org/what-we-do/advancing-responsible-outdoor-lighting/, Accessed in April 26, 2024. 

Olynyk, Patricia. Synthesizing fields: Art, complexes and the space beyond now. 2016. https://intellectdiscover.com/content/journals/10.1386/tear.14.1-2.3_2,

Levy, Ellen. Artist Ellen Levy Steals Your Attention. 2014. https://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/illusion-chasers/artist-ellen-levy-steals-your-attention/. Accessed in April 26, 2024. 

Jacqueline P. Jones, Jessica M. Drass, Girija Kaimal, Art therapy for military service members with post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injury: Three case reports highlighting trajectories of treatment and recovery, The Arts in Psychotherapy, Volume 63, 2019, Pages 18-30, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aip.2019.04.004. Accessed in April 26, 2024.