Book Launch Party with author Wendy Kline & artist Nao Bustamante

“Exposed is not just a history lesson: it’s a call to action, a demand for greater transparency and accountability, and a beacon of hope for more equitable healthcare. A compelling and indispensable read.” – Rana Awdish, M.D., author of In Shock: How Nearly Dying Made Me a Better Intensive Care Doctor

“Taking a sardonic approach to such histories, Nao Bustamante’s multimedia project BLOOM offers a thoughtful critique via a playful and queer reimaging of the modern vaginal and anal speculum.” – Contemporary Art Review LA

LOS ANGELES – In celebration of , their current exhibition with legendary artist Nao Bustamante – which proposes a bold redesign of the vaginal speculum – is pleased to present a public conversation between noted medical historian and author Wendy Kline and Bustamante on Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024.

In 2021, after reading a review of BLOOM while it was on display at ARTpace in San Antonio, Texas, Kline contacted Bustamante and flew out to see the show. This encounter led to years of dialogue between the two centering on the history of the pelvic examination. Now, Kline has written about Bustamante’s work in chapter two of her new book, , released just last month by Polity Press.

In Exposed, Kline uncovers the procedure’s fascinating—and often disturbing—history. From gynecological research on enslaved women’s bodies to nonconsensual practice on anesthetized patients, the pelvic exam as we know it today carries the burden of its sordid past. Its story is one of pain and pleasure, life-saving discoveries and heartbreaking encounters, questionable procedures and triumphant breakthroughs. Drawing on previously unpublished archival sources, along with interviews with patients, providers, and activists, Kline traces key moments and movements in gynecological history, from the surgeons of the nineteenth century to the OB/GYNs of today. 

The book, whose first printing sold out in under a week, has already received widespread interest, with coverage in Ms. Magazine (forthcoming), Marie Claire (forthcoming), Magazine, The,, , JAMA’s Journal of Medical Ethics (forthcoming),, and several podcasts including America Dissected.  She has given talks on the history of the procedure at Northwestern Medical (Ob/GYN); University of Nebraska Medical Center (Emergency Medicine); Henry Ford Hospital (Ob/GYN and women’s health); Indiana University School of Medicine, and the University of Virginia Center for Health Humanities and Ethics, in the School of Medicine.

Presented for the first time in Los Angeles, BLOOM is Bustamante’s nationally acclaimed and wide-ranging investigation into the history of the pelvic examination, documenting the artist’s own efforts to create the most significant redesign of the vaginal speculum since 1943. Fresh off her fellowship at the American Academy in Rome and recently names a “Latinx Artist to Know” by ARTnews, Bustamante presents a new vision of the vaginal imaginary in the fourth iteration of the exhibition, rooted in both research and object-making.

Though difficult in subject matter, BLOOM is approached with Bustamante’s signature humor, so audiences need not be afraid!  Much like Kline’s book, it is an invitation to think about ways to make the tool less unpleasant for the millions of patients who encounter it each year. After multiple

iterations and evolutions, Bustamante’s speculum prototype is seeking a collaboration

partner to bring it to examinees worldwide.

During the evening, guests will enjoy a book party and exhibition viewing before a sit-down conversation between Kline and Bustamante, followed by a book signing. Copies of EXPOSED will be available for purchase.

Track 16 is located within the Bendix Building in Downtown L.A.’s Fashion District at 1206 Maple Ave., Los Angeles, Calif. 90015.

To learn more about EXPOSED and Kline’s vital work, please visit wendykline.com.

EXPOSED: The Hidden History of the Pelvic Exam

Polity Press | 35.00 | 286 pages

September 10th, 2024 | ISBN 9781509552672

About the Author

Wendy Kline, Ph.D., Dema G. Seelye Chair in the History of Medicine at Purdue University, is internationally recognized for her scholarship in the history of medicine, history of women's health and the history of childbirth. She is the author of four major books focusing on sexuality and reproduction: (Polity Press, 2024); (Oxford University Press, 2019, (U. of Chicago Press 2010); and (U. of California Press, 2001). She has appeared in the Netflix documentary, Sex, Explained, as well as the PBS documentary, The Eugenics Crusade. Her research has been funded by major fellowships, including a Fulbright Distinguished Scholar fellowship, a British Academy Fellowship, and a Huntington Fellowship. Kline is also a professional violinist, currently principal second with the Lafayette Symphony Orchestra.

About the Artist

Nao Bustamante is a legendary Chicanx artist, residing in Los Angeles, California. Bustamante’s precarious work encompasses performance art, video installation, filmmaking, sculpture, and writing. Bustamante has presented in galleries, museums, universities and underground sites all around the world. She has exhibited, among other locales, at the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London, the New York Museum of Modern Art, The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Sundance International Film Festival/New Frontier, Outfest International Film Festival, El Museo del Barrio, Museum of Contemporary Art Los Angeles, First International Performance Biennial, Deformes in Santiago, Chile and the Kiasma Museum of Helsinki. She was also an unlikely contestant on the TV network, Bravo’s “Work of Art: The Next Great Artist.” Nao Bustamante is an alum of the San Francisco Art Institute, New Genres program and the Skowhegen School of Painting and Sculpture. Currently she holds the position of Professor of Art at the USC Roski School of Art and Design. 

To view her past work, see naobustamante.com. For current activities, visit instagram.com/naobustamante.

About Track 16 Gallery

Track 16 moved to the Bendix Building in downtown Los Angeles in 2017. The gallery has held over 250 exhibitions over 30 years, published over 100 books, and hosted upwards of 500 readings, talks, and performances. To learn more, visit track16.com.

Running through Dec. 7, BLOOM will be presented as part of the Participating Gallery

Program for Getty’s PST Art: Art & Science Collide, joining in a dynamic exploration of

the intersection of art and science this fall.

Media Contact for Nao Bustamante / Track 16 Gallery:

Katie Dunham

Katie Dunham Communications

[email protected]

Host or Publisher Track 16