Book launch

Hybrid Bodies

Authors/collaborators:  Alexa Wright (UK), Catherine Richards (Canada), Andrew Carnie (UK), Ingrid Bachmann (Canada), Dr. Heather Ross (Toronto), Dr. Patricia McKeever, (U of T), Dr. Susan Abbey (University Health Network), Dr. Jennifer Poole (Ryerson University, Toronto); and Dr. Margrit Shildrick (Linkoping University, Sweden)

Learn more about the Hybrid Bodies Project 

Description:

Ingrid Bachmann, Dr. Heather Ross and Dr. Patricia McKeever will be present for the launch.

The aim of the HYBRID BODIES project is to further explore the complexity of organ transplantation in a novel way which makes it accessible to the public by providing context to discuss and explore these ideas. We hope the artworks will provide a tangible focus for discussions. Seen as both the seat of human identity and the archetypal symbol of love, the heart is an organ that has been ascribed qualities and associations far beyond its anatomical functions. Since the first heart transplant in 1967, the technical aspects of the operation have been streamlined and now heart transplantation is the accepted therapy for end-stage heart failure. Four internationally exhibiting artists, Alexa Wright (UK), Catherine Richards (Canada), Andrew Carnie (UK), and Ingrid Bachmann (Canada), have had access to an innovative research study exploring the process of incorporating a transplanted heart. This interdisciplinary study, PITH (The Process of Incorporating a Transplanted Heart), was conducted by a leading research team based at the University Health Network in Toronto. The team consists of Dr. Heather Ross, a cardiologist and Director of the Cardiac Transplant Program at the University Health Network (Toronto); Dr. Patricia McKeever, a health sociologist (U of T) ; Dr. Susan Abbey, a transplant psychiatrist (University Health Network); Dr. Jennifer Poole, a health scientist (Ryerson University, Toronto); and Dr. Margrit Shildrick, a philosopher (Linkoping University, Sweden). While significant research has been conducted in transplantation using the bio-medical model, few researchers have explicitly connected organ recipients’ experiences and cultural views about transplantation to the notion of embodiment.