Mark Allen Soderstrom

Hypodermic, 2002
Plastic, rubber, silver

9" x 2 1/4" x 1 1/4"

 

 

As a child of a paramedic, much of my childhood was spent at hospitals and in ambulances. On one particular trip to the emergency room where my mother worked, I witnessed her being inoculated via injection. By this time I had been fairly desensitized by my familiarity with hypodermic needles. What struck me as peculiar about this incidence, however, was that I had never seen anyone get an injection from a 2-ounce syringe before, much less one with a forked needle.

 

As with most experiences a child witnesses, I accepted the incident without question.

 

Contemplating this event as an adult I could not come to terms with this object which seemed to make no practical sense. Such a device would have inadequate structural integrity.

 

Upon inquiring as to this event, my mother claimed to have no recollection of it or knowledge of such a device. While doubtful, my own investigation as to whether such a device has ever existed is as yet unverified.