Una Burke’s Medical Armor
I’m probably the last person to blog about this since it’s made the blogosphere rounds, but I thought I would anyway, just for the record. This is Una Burke‘s “medical armor,” a conceptual collection of artwear inspired by prosthetic devices and medical braces and the process of healing from trauma, titled Re.Treat. The warrior-like body armor is reminiscent of medical corsetry, and also of wearing human flesh as a shield against psychological harm. The means of protection also become a means of entrapment, binding the body tightly. She cites a few of her influences as Hans Bellmer, Alexander McQueen, and Erwin Olaf. On her Website she states the pieces were made from “undyed vegetable-tanned leather which is reminiscent of Caucasian flesh” – I couldn’t help finding that last part a little funny.

Tags: avant-garde, collars, corsetry, erwin olaf, fetish, hans bellmer, historically inspired, medical braces, medical-themed, sinister arts and crafts, trauma, una burke
Injured Children: The Art of Gottfried Helnwein
You probably thought this was a photograph when you first saw it (I definitely did); but it’s not. It’s an amazing painting by the renowned artist Gottfried Helnwein. His paintings are unbelievably photorealistic, and they often feature disturbing and provocative representations of children who are bloodied and injured, bandages wrapped around their heads: an allegory for innocence and trauma, emotional injury, the consequences of violence, abuse, and other scarring forces out in the world.
© 2010-2011 Synesthesia Garden


