Under The Eye: The Body
Mary Wedd
The motivation behind this project stems from my fascination with the various ailments and growths that appear on our bodies, and then the images of them. How does this fascination, worry, and fear of these images impact how I see my body and understand myself?
I explore these ideas of the traditional medical manual format: a gridded means of categorizing and classifying bodily abnormalities. Along with the aesthetics of these manuals, I am building on Damien Hirst’s piece Pharmacy, a tall cabinet filled with different treatments for the body organized from head to toe so that when the viewer approaches the medicine is parallel to the body.
My book, using this structure from head to toe, is filled with abnormalities of the body, accompanied by poetry and literature that invites the viewer to come to terms with the disturbing and decaying aspects of our human bodies. The text is filled with various corresponding lessons and images to understand the soul and body from head to toe, together.