idw – Informationsdienst Wissenschaft
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Facial and cranial (re)constructions have become standard procedures in today’s surgical theatres. Yet, while great technological advances improved operation planning and execution, little progress has been made in developing conceptual and visual parameters to assess the »object« in question. Descriptions of a normal head shape, its variation and deformation, or simply of what shape the outcome of a therapeutic intervention should be, remain vague and subjective. Expressions like »disharmonious«, »unbalanced« or »soft features« highlight this blind spot in medical discourse. More often than not, doctors and surgeons have to rely on their »implicite knowledge« in judging the facial and cranial outlines, and the question is where this «implicit knowledge« comes from. It is most likely informed by popular beliefs, representations in the media and scientifically outmoded ways of thinking – i.e. square chin = assertiveness, high forehead = intelligence – and is thus at odds with the astounding precision of their surgical techniques.
The form of the head has been interpreted as a signifier of cognitive and social capacities and a scale for goodness and beauty since Antiquity. While physiognomy, phrenology, or theories of racism in anthropology and criminology are based on the idea of a correspondence between the outside and the inside, ancient art established the head as a unit when measuring the beauty of proportions and harmony. This set off a long-lasting obsession with the numerical and proportional assessment of the head, currently represented by ›statistical‹ approaches to proportions, and the search of meaning behind the numbers. Medical and artistic knowledge intermingle not only in anatomical textbooks and collections, but also on the operating table, where artistic practices may inspire surgeons when (re)modelling the osseous structures of the head. At the same time, it can be observed how skulls excite the imagination of the general public even in the times of neuroscience: from exhibitions on cranial cults via reports on digital and genetic reconstruction of famous heads to unease about anatomical collections of skulls and their origins in previous wars and genocides, the fascination with our most prominent osseous organ is far from historic.
This conference attempts a survey of different concepts of the skull. It wants to create an opportunity for medical practitioners and cultural historians to start a dialogue about which interpretative patterns may still be active and relevant when we think about head shapes today. What is the role of rules of proportion, visually internalised patterns from the arts and media, and historical physiological knowledge that has taken roots in a today’s general knowledge? Which concepts determine what counts as a »normal« skull?
Information on participating / attending:
Date:
11/08/2012 10:00 - 11/10/2012 20:00
Event venue:
Schützenstr. 18, 3. Et., Trajekte-Tagungsraum 308
10117 Berlin
Berlin
Germany
Target group:
Scientists and scholars, Students
Email address:
Relevance:
international
Subject areas:
Cultural sciences, Language / literature, Medicine, Philosophy / ethics
Types of events:
Conference / symposium / (annual) conference
Entry:
07/10/2012
Sender/author:
Sabine Zimmermann
Department:
Zentrum für Literatur- und Kulturforschung Berlin (ZFL)
Event is free:
yes
Language of the text:
English
URL of this event: http://idw-online.de/en/event40316
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