Imagine you're in a courtroom. The jury listens carefully to the expert
witness -- a physician -- as he explains how an automobile accident has left
the plaintiff with a permanently injured back. But try as the jurors might,
it's hard for them to grasp the ideas behind the technical jargon.
Then the lawyer brings out two exhibits. The first is a physical illustration
of a healthy back. Then he places a second exhibit beside it -- an illustration
of the injured woman's back. The jurors gasp. In a flash, they understand
perfectly what the expert witness meant.
For Rusty Jones, that moment is what makes his job worthwhile. Jones is
a medical illustrator specializing in medical-legal illustration. Using state-of-the-art
digital software, he creates exhibits that are mounted on stiff backboard
and used in courtrooms.
"My role is totally educational," he says. "I need to put in the jury's
mind what this person had to go through to get to this day in court."
Jones spends most of his time working on medical malpractice and personal
injury cases. For him, one of the most difficult parts of his job is creating
illustrations for accidents involving kids.
"It's especially difficult if the accident could have been prevented. You
tend to get emotionally involved."
If you have an artistic streak and an interest in science, a career in
medical illustration may be for you. Wayne Heim, a medical illustrator in
Chesterland, Ohio, still remembers the day he first learned about medical
illustration from his high school guidance counselor.
"I was always into the arts and sciences, and in the arts I leaned toward
realism. A bell went off in my head and I thought, 'That's for me.'"
Heim trained at the Cleveland Institute of Art. He got his start working
for a medical-legal firm before embarking on a freelance career.
Heim loves the challenge of working with many different media. "You have
to work in as many different styles and techniques as possible."
Once, he painted and airbrushed a three-dimensional sculpture of the five
senses for a local health museum. Back in his studio, he dreams up web page
designs for corporations on his computer.
Medical illustration salvaged Keith Kasnot's artistic career. Kasnot was
training to be a sculptor when he landed in the hospital with two broken knees
following a serious automobile accident. While there, he met his future wife,
a physical therapist. She suggested a career in medical illustration.
"You're combining fine art and technology and atmospheric perspective.
The audience isn't looking at a kidney on a piece of white paper. You create
environment and mood with grace and style."
Kasnot eventually chose to freelance out of a studio in his home. "Freelancing
is an intimidating prospect. But you're your own boss. You have more control
over your assignments."
His freelance assignments have included everything from advertisements
for pharmaceutical companies to illustrations for National Geographic and
Scientific American.
Kasnot advises graduates to work for somebody else before striking out
on their own. After graduation, he spent nearly 10 years working in the private
sector, including as art director for a company that makes pacemakers and
other implants.
"It gives you an idea of what's on the other side -- that there are deadlines
to meet. Instead of understanding just 50 percent of the story, you understand
100 percent of the story."