Steve Miller

The use of x-rays in my art practice had started in1992 after enduring another anachronistic conversation about the death of painting. Conceiving of a way to reinvent the notion of a portrait, I began to use medical technology to look beyond the surface and beneath the flesh. I continued this exploration with CT scans, MRIs, sonograms, echocardiograms, electron microscopes and with x-ray photography--taking photos of other mysteries including women's shoes and musical instruments. This same lens of technology that could be used to understand the human body could also be used to gain insight into the natural world.

The astounding beauty of Brazil inspired my project "Health of the Planet." Taking x-rays of the flora and the fauna of the Amazon allowed me to give the lungs of our planet a medical check up which was the source of the images for my book "Radiographic."