Future Relic Two: Xenopthorpian Heart
"The future is already here"
Galway City Museum
Bio-compatable polymers
Image courtesy of Tom Flanagan
2015
This is an anatomical model of a Xenothorpian heart was created during a 6-month residency in CURAM- the center for research in medical devices. As an artist that primarily trained as a sculptor, it was McGibbon’s ambition from the onset of the residency to explore the creative potential of biomaterials to create form. The artist collaborated with material scientists Ghazal Tadyyon and Kyriakos Spanoudes to create this human/zebra fish structure. Technically the Xenothorpian heart is bio-compatible with the human body. The body of the heart is created using Tadyyon’s polymer. A material created to conduct electrical currents in the body. The polymer is translucent mimicking the translucency of the zebra fish, a quality that makes the ideal specimens for medical research.The stripes of the zebra heart are created with Spanoudes polymer fiber. A material created to grow tendons. The stripes are spun onto the heart using an electro spinner. The actual process of this creation references Mary Shelley’s notion of the Modern Prometheus, explored in her novel Frankenstein, which features a being created by grafting body parts together and animating them with the use of electricity.
"The future is already here"
Galway City Museum
Bio-compatable polymers
Image courtesy of Tom Flanagan
2015
This is an anatomical model of a Xenothorpian heart was created during a 6-month residency in CURAM- the center for research in medical devices. As an artist that primarily trained as a sculptor, it was McGibbon’s ambition from the onset of the residency to explore the creative potential of biomaterials to create form. The artist collaborated with material scientists Ghazal Tadyyon and Kyriakos Spanoudes to create this human/zebra fish structure. Technically the Xenothorpian heart is bio-compatible with the human body. The body of the heart is created using Tadyyon’s polymer. A material created to conduct electrical currents in the body. The polymer is translucent mimicking the translucency of the zebra fish, a quality that makes the ideal specimens for medical research.The stripes of the zebra heart are created with Spanoudes polymer fiber. A material created to grow tendons. The stripes are spun onto the heart using an electro spinner. The actual process of this creation references Mary Shelley’s notion of the Modern Prometheus, explored in her novel Frankenstein, which features a being created by grafting body parts together and animating them with the use of electricity.