Every Body is an Archive

About

Liz Orton’s project Every Body is an Archive explores the bounds of medical imaging data, entangling the biological, digital and social body. In mis/using the viewing software used by radiologists, Orton’s work makes visible the spaces and limits of medical data reconstruction.

CT scans use hundreds of computer-processed x-ray measurements taken from different angles to produce cross-section images of specific areas of the body. This allows the radiologists to see inside the person without cutting. By accessing patients’ CT scan data (with permission), Liz Orton experiments with software, searching for and making visible the human elements of medical data. The result is a combination of software outputs that explore the liminal space between data and the human body, alongside performative re-enactments with patients based on memories and images of medical experiences.

This project has received support from the Wellcome Trust, University College London and University Arts London.