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Prothesen in der Body Art. Zwischen Selbstermächtigung, (Dys-)Funktion und Posthumanismus

Aufsatz von Nelly Janotka

Abstract

In medicine, the prosthesis is defined as technical support and as a mere replacement of body parts. However, the prosthesis is increasingly expanding beyond the field of medical technology and finding new areas of application in pop culture, design and art. Contemporary Body Art in particular is producing works that question and expand the generally accepted medical concept. Is art capable of creating spaces to reinterpret an object commonly regarded as a marker of ‘disability’ into a means of self-empowerment? This article explores this question through artists such as Lisa Bufano, Mari Katayama, Lorenza Böttner and Stelarc. In juxtaposing the various artistic engagements with prostheses, it becomes clear that the ‚human body’ is a concept whose definitions can be shifted and even dissolved. Thus, the prostheses can be attributed neither only to technology nor only to the body. At the same time, it is hardly possible to unequivocally answer when prosthetics themselves are solely intended to compensate for physical ‚defect’ or loss and when they serve other intentions and ideas of the future.

Über die Autorin: Nelly Janotka, Universität Heidelberg

Editorial Review

Rechte: CC-BY 4.0 

Empfohlene Zitierweise: Nelly Janotka: „Prothesen in der Body Art. Zwischen Selbstermächtigung,(Dys-)Funktion und Posthumanismus“, in: Kunst und Gebrechen, hg. v. Hildegard Fraueneder, Manfred Kern und Nora Grundtner, Wien: Sonderzahl 2024 (Figurationen des Übergangs 1), S. 137-173, DOI: 10.25598/transitionen-2024-i_5, <https://transition.hypotheses.org/4730>


OpenEdition schlägt Ihnen vor, diesen Beitrag wie folgt zu zitieren:
RS (19. Dezember 2024). Prothesen in der Body Art. Zwischen Selbstermächtigung, (Dys-)Funktion und Posthumanismus. Figurationen des Übergangs. Abgerufen am 29. April 2025 von https://doi.org/10.58079/12yng