Chainsaw/Speculum

Opposite Posters
Poster Set

COLLAGE
TYPOGRAPHY
PRINT

Featured in
CCS Student Exhibition 2023

Chainsaw/Speculum is a series of collaged posters that represents the years and years of patient suffering within standardized gynecological practices.

The posters function as a set, with the former representing medical practices of the past, and the latter representing the present. “Chainsaw (Crack One Open)” is representative of the earliest industrialized practices within childbirth, in which a hand-crank chainsaw was used to saw women’s pelvises open during childbirth. “Speculum (Open Your Legs)” represents the modern speculum, utilized within pelvic exams, often to a patient’s discomfort from the cold, obtrusive metal.    

The process began with creating over 60 collages in a fast-paced environment, typically 60 seconds to 5 minutes. It was a challenge at first to solidify ideas in such a short amount of time, but soon, it came naturally and helped me to get out of any ruts I
became stuck in. Drawing inspiration from my quick collages’ theme of female suffering, I worked to create two 24x36 posters that I believed were emblematic of my topic.

Visual sources are drawn from historical patents for medical devices and botanical illustrations from the early 1900s. The patents represent the
technical, cold, and impersonal nature of these devices, while the botanical elements aim to cover up medical atrocities with flowery insincerity. Witty wordplay represents the demands of medical industries, in serif and sans serif typefaces to reflect the typographic styles present at the time.