ABOUT THIS COLLECTION  
A Swedish physician, Gustav Zander (1835-1920) helped pioneer “mechanotherapy,” or the promotion of health and healing through the use of exercise apparatus. At a time when belief in noxious humor still existed, Zander’s idea to promote health with resistance training using specialized machinery was revolutionary. While some of the machines pictured in this series resemble instruments of torture, each shows how it targeted different parts of the body—much like the mechanized trainers in a modern-day gym.
 
COLLECTION DETAILS
Series title: Medico-Mechanical Gymnastics by Gustave Zander
Series size: 12 artworks
Edition: Limited edition of 1000
Proof of Ownership: Certification on the Ethereum blockchain under the ERC1155 protocol. Each artwork is delivered privately and directly to collectors as non-fungible tokens (NFTs) that guarantee proof of ownership.
Format: Pieces consist of PNG files sized 2160x3840 pixels - 150 dpi.
Medium: Photography
Artwork materials:  Photographic paper
Contract Address: 0x495f947276749ce646f68ac8c248420045cb7b5e
ID: 2749212597480566...
 
ABOUT THE ARTIST
The innovative and enterprising Zander was a follower of countryman Pehr Henrik Ling, inventor of calisthenics, or exercises performed with minimal equipment. Zander added the equipment, inventing a wide range of mechanical outlets for exertion. But because the weight and tension could be targeted and regulated, his genius was to see how machines offered therapeutic exercise to those with injuries, deformities, and those just not in good enough shape for calisthenics. Zander’s success took off when he won a gold medal at the 1876 Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia for his exercise machines. Before long, he opened Zander Institutes around the world. For the first time, exercise was seen as a personal choice, not something required by economic necessity. Naturally this appealed to the elite, who made sure to wear the very latest in athletic wear.
 
COLLECTION CREDITS
Historical curatorship: HARI - Historical Art Research Institute (HARI Editions)
Artwork: Gustave Zander
Year of original publication: 1892
Post-production: HARI - Historical Art Research Institute (HARI Editions)
Digital art supervisor: Marie-Lou Desmeules
Editorial: Braden Phillips
Historical research: Evangelos Rosios, Braden Phillips
Executive production: Victor Zabrockis
 
RIGHTS OVERVIEW
Source of artwork: Smithsonian Libraries
Underlying work rights: PD Worldwide
Digital copyrights: Attribution