Invisible Light

Dr Michael Jackson the author of this interesting new book is a radiologist with an interest in art both classical and modern. In this new book he has set about exploring the relationships and unusual interfaces between modern diagnostic imaging and artworks from various eras. The exploration covers not just paintings but also the modern media such as cinema which today borrows from ideas emanating from modern imaging technology. A chapter on visual neurophysiology serves to remind us of the complexities of the perceptual process on which image appreciation and analysis all ultimately depend. The breadth of western art has been fertile material for analysis. We are taken on a journey from historical cave paintings, Egyptian art, through to the development of perspective in art with examples from Durer in Germany through to the Renaissance painters well versed in anatomy who depicted the human body in astonishing detail in their painted dissected studies of the body which today can be reproduce from modern CT scanning technology. Examples of the anatomical drawings from Vesalius and other ecorche examples of religious iconography demonstrated the interfaces of anatomy and art with modern imaging. Picasso interestingly dabbled with bizarre perspectives in his artistic portrayals of the body and provided much material for analysis. Modern artists have explored art and radiology with many being inspired from radiological studies and images especially MRI and CT angiographic studies of the brain. Others such as Hugh Turvey have used radiography as a tool to create artistic images. An analysis of the interface of radiology and cinema is illustrated with the film 'The Man of Steel' about Superman who has X-ray powers but other films such as the Avengers franchise and Transformer films have also tapped radiology resources to provide entertainment. Dr Jackson has used a vast range of illustrated source material from art, cartography, religious iconography, medical history, television, cinema and journalism and personal anecdotes to synthesise a smorgasbord of diverse subject areas into a very enjoyable and readable account of his thesis that the foundations of our modern image interpretation were laid by the works of artists, painters and scientists of yesteryear. All connected with medical imaging will find something of interest in this volume. - Dr Arpan K Banerjee, Chair, The International Society for the History of Radiology (ISHRAD).