A: No. Just like I came to the body and
anatomy through my art practice, I taught
myself how to sew and eventually, how to
embroider, for my art. I never learned how to
thread a needle or sew a button growing up,
let alone do embroidery. We did have a sewing
machine in our house, but it was an antique that
didn’t work — in fact, it was our coffee table.
educate or demonstrate.
Q: Being an artist based in New York is
amazing, but never easy. What is your day job,
does it relate to your practice at all?
Q: Your work dances around the line between
scientific illustration and art, what are your
thoughts about that?
A: I work for a nonprofit dedicated to
improving public space in NYC called Design
Trust for Public Space. My perspective as an
artist and a visual thinker is beneficial in my job,
but no, my job does not relate to the art world
or to my art practice.
A: I am inspired by anatomical illustration
certainly, but I disagree with the
characterization of my work as illustration.
The purpose and function of making art is very
different from a textbook illustration meant to
A: First, to make something beautiful and
second, to make the invisible visible.
Q: What would you say your goal as an artist
is, making work centered around anatomy and
biology?
organum auditus
(2007). 30”h x
35”w x 5”d. Fabric, embroidery,
cotton stuffing &
pencil on canvas.
Visit her website at www.megancanning.com.
14
SciArt in America August 2013