GRAVID (2023 - present)

Research-based project on William Hunter’s The Human Gravid Uterus

William Hunter´s Anatomia Uteri Humani Gravidi Tabulis Illustrata (The Anatomy of the Human Gravid Uterus Exhibited in Figures, 1774) is the first anatomical atlas depicting the pregnant body illustrated from direct observation during dissection and is widely considered a cornerstone of modern obstetrics. Anatomists at the time often acquired corpses from poor houses, though a 2010 study claims this source alone could not account for the number of pregnant bodies depicted in the atlas and speculates that Hunter is responsible for the murder of these women. Murdered or not, the women depicted in the atlas illustrate a familiar logic whereby nameless feminine flesh becomes the substrate for masculine knowledge, authorship, and power. Using collage and video, I have been conducing a series of research-based projects based on this archive of images.