Jacques Monestier

golden prosthetic hand by Jacques Monestier alongside a conventional split hook

Sculptor and creator of automata Jacques Monestier has created a prosthetic hand that represents a provocative alternative to both hands and hooks; it is a design that simultaneously acknowledges its role yet also its artificiality.  THe back of his golden hand is cast in the likeness of a human hand, but from an alloy; the palm is upholstered in soft, luxuriant leather.  As Monestier explains, "Amputees often suffer a loss of self-image.  I wanted to transmute what might be considered a disfurement into something marvelous and exotic.  I wanted to create a hand that would no longer cause shame and repulsion.  I wanted the amputees themselves to be proud to have a prosthetic hand and pleased to look at it.  And for the people around them, I wanted the prosthetic hand to be an object of healthy curiosity, a work of art."

Pullin, Graham.  “Design Meets Disability.” Cambridge, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Press, 2011, 35-37.