The Process of my Prosthesis

Creating an exhibit from the ground up was a very detailed and in depth process. The group I was a part of, including Amon Appelt, Danielle Juliano, and Natasha Dewitz, was assigned to research the counterculture of the neighborhood of Haight-Ashbury in the 1960s.

To begin brainstorming the basics and functions of a prosthetic, I went to the Natural History Museum to sketch and photograph a grouping of features on animals that caught my eye. These features occur naturally, yet aid the animal in a way that a prosthetic would! Here are some sketches and photographs from the museum;

After this visit, the next step was to begin researching the community of Haight Ashbury and find out what political, economic, and social issues were part of the counterculture movement. The following paragraph was a writing piece from Seminar that summed up my research;

“With political and international issues such as the US’s involvement in Vietnam, the emergence of an entirely new subculture occurred, with strong occupation in the area of Height Ashbury San Francisco in the 1960s. Issues of the political arena ushered in major anti-war movements that helped shape the changes in social aspects of the society. The social realm of this period saw the support and formation of many new movements, such as feminism, environmentalism, and gay rights. These liberal ideologies mirror the values of the counterculture during this era. Thanks to new forms of technology and media, movements could take shape and gain support through radio, television, and even cinema, especially among the youth. The renowned emergence of the “hippie” lifestyle also blossomed into a widespread reality. Experimentation with drugs, sexuality, and general lifestyle was greatly promoted. The music, now easier to share through media, shaped the culture in a sort of revolutionary way. Music festivals and large gatherings were very popular; these types of communal functions allowed for people to share their new liberal ideas and help these to come to life and grow amongst one another. The neighborhood of Height Ashbury in San Francisco was the breeding ground for this type of countercultural behavior. Called the “summer of love”, 1967 saw a huge social moment occur in this San Francisco neighborhood. The area became home to hippies from all over, who came together and questioned government, experimented with various personal values and ideologies, and shared music and art. It was a cultural revolution with the intention of questioning anything and everything that was then considered to be the “norm”. ”

From here, I had the information that would help me to brainstorm prosthetics that I could create to aid the hippies of Haight Ashbury in their anti-authoritarian and peaceful endeavors.

These following sketches are ideas for my possible prosthetic;

These sketches illustrate the idea I had of creating a wearable form of peaceful protest; the piece would help the wearer in their acts to express objection of authority through the flowers being incorporated as a physical symbol. But the main use of my prosthetic would be to aid the wearer in more convenient ways to use drugs, specifically smoking marijuana. With my device, the wearer would not have to hold the joint and burn their fingers, the piece would do that for them as an extra body extension! It would do this, all while capturing the hippie aesthetic.

When I presented my ideas to the group I received some very interesting feedback. They liked the idea of the prosthetic aiding in drug use, but the class thought it should have a stronger link to how the hippies were engaging and creating a counterculture. I was missing an element of their objection of authority and promotion of peaceful coexistence. The prosthetic needed an added symbol or element that would portray this.

I took this critique form my peers and worked it into my next brainstorm of prosthetics. My prototype brainstorming came out as a more complete group. After all of this progress and detailed formation of my ideas, I began to create a group of physical prototypes for my prosthetic. Here are images of the different medias of prototypes;

These prosthetics greatly helped me to get a more solid idea of how and what I really wanted to create for the people of Haight Ashbury. At the same time, we were researching deeper into the economic, social, and political issues of our chosen society. We were asked to find artifacts that were symbolic of the culture at the time for a seminar assignment, and I discovered an entirely new aspect of Haight Ashbury that I wanted to somehow incorporate; MUSIC. Music was a factor that was bringing people together and allowing them to revel in their shared ideas through lyrics and psychedelic vibes. My artifact for seminar was the song “San Francisco” which was the ballad of that Summer of Love in 1967. This influenced my final prosthetic idea in a whole new way. Here’s what I created;

These pieces allow the user to listen to the songs that were fueling and nurturing their ideals, while physically connecting them to others. The piece combines and strengthens the counterculture.

The only note I received about my prosthetic was to add flowers as that signature hippie aesthetic and sign of protest. Also I needed to add more part to the final piece that would attach to the body and make it more of a prosthetic.

The final piece turned out to be a set of headphones that is decorated in a long vine that would connect to fellow hippies and allow them to share ideas through music and culture. My group mates also created prosthetics that enhanced the hippie’s sense of togetherness by physically connecting the users. The difference in their prosthetic compared to mine was the main aspect of the counterculture that was being highlighted in the piece. Amon’s represented protest through signs attached to the vine, while Natasha’s and Dani’s allowed the user to attach and carry drugs throughout the vine. Our final exhibition presented the pieces all linked together as they would be when worn! The entire collection portrayed the hippie aesthetic and ideology through pieces that worked to bring the people together and translate their ideals outwardly to share with the rest of the world in the most peaceful way.

It was a very interesting and in depth process to create a group of pieces like this. Our exhibition went better than planned, and our prosthetics would definitely be appropriate for the Haight Ashbury hippies.