Joanna M Hawley, an artist out of Bethesda, Maryland, proposes a more aesthetically aware approach to manufacturing prostheses. Pictured here is an artificial leg with a bit of retro furniture and a hint of Steve McQueen.
From the artist:
Prosthetics generally lack humanity, style and grace. Often, they look much like landing gear and make the wearer uncomfortable, self aware, and sometimes depressed. By channeling the Eames’ use materials and iconic style, we designed a leg with Steve McQueen in mind. We sought to convey a creative use of positive and negative space, a balance of materials and a reflection of the wearer.
This project taught me to expand my use of research materials. We interviewed several amputees in varying stages of acceptance, met with Sephora color specialists to discuss skin tones, and 3D laser scanned actual legs to translate the proportions of the human body into CAD. Through a wide range of techniques, I explored the challenge of designing something with the body in mind.
Product design page: Eames-inspired Prosthetic Leg
(hat tip: Yanko Design)
