Medical Illustrations - the Talus

Hi All,

This past winter and spring I had some illustration work come my way.  I don't actively persue illustration work, but I do welcome inquiries and I'm an artist, I love the work.  So, I'm always grateful to have some artwork projects come my way.

This past winter, Mary Meyers, from the American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons, contacted me about producing a few illustrations for a book that they were putting together.   So we worked out the details and I got to work.  Dr. Brett Sachs was the author of the chapter which I illustrated, and he brought me up to speed on what he needed and I got to work.

First illustration showing various types of injuries to the superior medial area of the Talus bone.

The first illustration shows the Talus bone and highlights the superior, medial part of the bone that sometimes when injured, doesn't heal very well.  It shows the five most common types of injuries that happen in that area.

Second illustration showing the technique where the drill goes thru the Tibia.

The second illustration shows a technique where the surgeon would drill thru the Tibia in order to be able to drill into the Talus.  When that area of the Talus is injured, it doesn't always heal very well or quickly for some, because there's not a lot of circulation in that area of the bone.  By drilling into it they can then do some things that will bring blood flow into that area and stimulate healing.

Third illustration showing the Drill Guide technique.

 The third shows a similar technique using a drill guide.  Using the guide, the surgeon drills thru a tube into the bone.  The direction of drilling is from the lower lateral area diagonally to the injured area in the superior or upper area of the bone.

I started with tight pen and ink illustrations.  I scanned them in to my Mac and finished the illustrations with Photoshop and my Wacom tablet.  I drew the black and white layer and then filled color on layers beneath it.   A simple yet effective technique. 

All in all, it was fun to get into a little anatomy drawing again.  I worked in Air Force teaching hospitals for 10 years as a medical illustrator and I still enjoy this challenging and educational work.

Have a great day everyone.  Check out my web portfolio at:  www.behance.net/tk-art
If you'd like to commission a piece of artwork or hire me to illustrate your project, let me know and we can talk about it.

Peace,

Tom