This piece shows the structures of red blood cells. In the bottom 3rd fourth of the painting I show structural anomaly that occurs in
Sickle Cell Anemia. The actual red blood cells are in the background, with some sickle shaped ones in the Sickle Cell Anemia section. On top of that I painted in the hemoglobin protein structure that is responsible for carrying oxygen in red blood cells, and in the anomaly section the hemoglobin is deformed. Then layered through the hemoglobin are the abbreviations for the amino acids in the sequences for normal and Sickle Cell Anemia hemoglobin and the molecular pattern of the hydrocarbon backbone of the amino acid chain (excluding the r-groups except for the ones that change for Sickle Cell Anemia) in green and blue respectively. I think the structure and visual texture are strong in this piece, and I think the white highlights on some of the red blood cells make them stand out more. I think the anomaly could be emphasized more strongly. In my next piece I will focus on making the anomaly the central focal point of the piece.
I took the advice from last week and added visual texture to the surface of this painting before I began adding content; which definitely adds depth to the piece. The texture of the background represents the deterioration of order in the brain. This painting is loosely divided into three sections. The top section represents a normal brain, the middle section represents early Alzheimer's Disease, and the bottom section represents late Alzheimer's. The yellow diagrams in the background depict nerve signals being transmitted in the top section, and failing to be transmitted as well in the bottom two sections. The white brain nerve cells are healthy in the top, but in the bottom of the painting they become seriously tangled, preventing proper brain activity (depicted in the yellow diagrams). The brain in the top section is red and orange, representing healthy brain function. The middle brain is yellow and orange, representing a slight decline in brain activity. The bottom brain is blue and is sort of falling apart, representing an extreme loss of brain function. The brains are set at different angles to suggest the idea that the brain is falling down. This piece shows that the tangled nerve cells in the brain cause the brain to be unable to transmit signals properly, resulting in a serious loss of brain activity. This stays true to my concentration of exploring anomoly in molecular and cellular structure and its results. I am very pleased with the way this one turned out.
