“We are biology. We are reminded of this at the beginning and the end, at birth and at death. In between we do what we can to forget.” - Mary Roach from Stiff

I have always been fascinated with the archetypical figure of the mad scientist, unfettered by moral imperatives, and consumed with the desire to alter humanity's biological limitations. We all have a little bit of the mad scientist within us, a need to accomplish the seemly impossible, coupled with the longing for an existence that is not so fragile. Tapping into the mad scientist that exists within me I explore how scientific innovation functions in a society driven by consumer demand.

My artwork reflects the consequences of increasingly frequent collisions between medical technology and consumer culture, a battle of style versus substance, life versus lifestyle. The progess of commercialized medicine is not a new developement, it is simply more pronounced in present day society. Places such as The Museum of Questionable Medical Objects exposed me to the scientific community’s early attempts at consumer friendly medical devices, such as the breast enlarging vaccum pump, need I say more. In their time and place these devices were considered scientific triumphs, serving now as important reminders of the fallibility and sometime madness inherent in even the best intentions.

I alter the familiar objects and routines of our daily lives into pseudo-scientific solutions for the frailties and limitations of the human body. These “indispensable” products demonstrate a usefulness and practicality situated somewhere in between earnest necessity, comic absurdity and dangerous deviance. Each of these pieces examine our all too human desire to find easy and accessible solutions to improved health, beauty, longevity, and intellect. They are the charlatan’s magic elixir, well-packaged cons meant to amuse and seduce the viewer, while exploring darker issues of desire coupled with manipulation and misrepresented ideals.

Alison Hiltner 2005