Category: Body

mTOR Off

April 2, 2026 By arne hendriks Off

At the center of The Incredible Shrinking man’s belief that we should and can become smaller is its most obvious component: the body. Human bodies, especially in the west, have become alarmingly tall in a relatively short period of time since the mid 19th century.…

20% Ma

March 30, 2026 By arne hendriks Off

The Incredible Shrinking Man has long been fascinated by Hara Hachi Bu, the practice of eating until only 80% full. This discipline does more than just limit intake; it creates, and honors, a 20% void. This intentional emptiness relates to the Japanese concept of Ma.…

Growth Plate Micro-Climate

November 15, 2025 By arne hendriks Off

Much of human height is determined by the micro-climate in the Epiphyseal plates of the long bones in our legs. They are size-relational wonderlands and the specific climatological conditions within these wonderlands decide if, when, and where, growth happens. The growth plate consist of translucent…

The Dwarfs: Pataikos

May 22, 2024 By arne hendriks Off

A wisdom text of ancient Egyptian literature, Instruction of Amenemope, papyrus EA 10474, gives the following instruction: ‘Laugh not at a blind man, nor tease a dwarf’. This seems to indicate that while their differences could attract negative attention, they were to be treated with…

Exponential Stairs

April 15, 2024 By arne hendriks Off

The Exponential Staircase (2013) was an artistic research project by students of the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague, as part of a 3 day Shrinking Man masterclass that investigated the experience of becoming smaller. The daily topics evolved around the themes of food,…