Personal Tech
Annnnd a prosthetic hand WITH cosmetically-perfect cover. You’ve already won, sir: neatest and coolest table at the Flea.
It’s hard not to be stopped cold by this kind of item. How did this wind up at a flea market? Who originally owned it? What kind of an impact did the prosthetic have on his life?
Was this the final prosthetic of his life, or did he simply stop using it? When he lost his hand, which of the three options did he adopt? The sculpture that looks like the hand he lost, the hooks that at least restored some of its function, or the bare stump, which isn’t as functional as the hooks but in some sense is "his natural body"?
From the viewer’s perspective…this was a man’s hand. When he was out and about…who held it? Whose shoulder was touched by it during hugs? Did it smooth the hair of somebody’s child?
Is that a crease where a wedding ring might have been worn?
When I go to the Flea, I’m mostly in Journalist mode. I need to document. At the scene, this item registered mostly as a great example of the wild and unpredictable things you see at the MIT Flea Market. I bracketed lots of exposures. It was a unique item and I didn’t want to go home and find that I blew the chance to get it right. Oftentimes when I spend time with the morning’s photos, I see the item fully for the first time.
I’m having a curious reaction. I look at my own hands. I think about the fact that I’ve made my living through my ability to write. I’ve lost people who were very close to me; my hands held theirs at the end.
Looking at this photo suddenly makes me a little sad.
Image by andyi
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