The spectacular part of the exhibit is the display of preserved bodies. They are designed to present different body 'systems' - the muscle system, the nervous system, circulation, etc. by showing those parts of an actual preserved human body, fully articulated. I was not spooked by it at all. Of course I worked for years in a medical school so maybe I am a little more sanguine about stuff like that - I don't know. I thought it was fascinating.
It was also beautiful. There was a great artistry in posing the bodies in various (mostly athletic) postures. You really got a sense of what a complex yet fragile thing the human body is. All those improbable structures of bone, nerve and flesh somehow holding each other together and forming a functional body. Amazing!
It was also interesting to observe the people attending. Compared to most other exhibits I have been to people were very quiet & almost reverential in their intense fascination. It was a lovely display. They had a reservation system and let in so many people every 15 minutes. The exhibit took me about an hour and 15 minutes to go through.
This photo doesn't do justice to the finished work, but I thought it was interesting. The display was meant to show the muscles involved in locomotion - so von Hagen (the guy whose idea, techniques & efforts created the preserved bodies) posed a skeleton as though running and then pulled away the layers of muscle to clearly display them all. Instead of just spreading the muscles out in a flat and static-looking display he had them fan out as though they were flapping in the wind while the runner ran. IRL it looked beautiful. In this photo is just looks a bit strange.
One thing he did that I couldn't decide over was that he added eyeballs, lips and noses to most of the articulated displays. I guess it was an attempt to emphasize and preserve the humanity of the people whose bodies he had preserved. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it was distracting.
There were also a lot of non-articulated, preserved body parts on display--diseased and normal hearts, clogged and clean arteries, bone joints, etc.
I think it is well worth going to see.
14 comments:
Oops. I forgot I can't do links. You can find the Science Museum's Body Worlds description at this site:
http://www.smm.org/bodyworlds/
Did you also see the preserved fetuses in various stages of development?
Yes. That was the only inconvenient part of the show.
Most displays were fairly open, you could walk around and go back & forth to what interested you several times, but for some reason they had the fetuses in a room with only one regular width door to access, so you had to stand in a big line to get in. Maybe a 6 or 8 minute wait in line. Then you had to walk in a big circle & exit another door.
They stated in a big sign at the door that the larger fetuses displayed were all 80 years old or more - I guess they thought this would be less controversial or something. These did not look real to me at all. I have seen old anatomical oddities preserved in formalin, which is pretty much all there was 80 years ago. These did not look like those. Maybe they were "restored"?
I thought the pose he picked for the pregnant woman was very odd. She was in a classic 'reclining nude' pose when I thought she should have been in a childbirth pose. That would have been more interesting & more appropriate. (They specified that the woman donated her body knowing she likely would not live much longer. Turns out, the baby did not survive either--so I guess it came as part of the package. She was 8 months pregnant.)
This was also the only part of the exhibit where people seemed testy or something, but all without conversation. A weird vibe inside that room.
Throughout the exhibit there were any number of "plainclothes" staff. It took me a while to spot them, since they were not trying to educate or steer people around - just quietly circulating & watching. I guess they wanted people on the floor to protect the displays and be ready to handle the situation if someone freaked out or something.
All the big, full-body displays were just out there, with no cases or glass or anything between you and them. You could have reached out & touched them (despite the do not touch signs) if you had been so inclined.
There was also a booth where you could sign up to donate your body. Not much action there, lol.
I find the whole idea fascinating. Thank-you for your thoughts. Maybe a period where I have both time and money will correspond with this exhibit being shown somewhere nearby. :-(
I would think that this is the perfect atmosphere in which to present something like this, what with all the CSI shows being so popular.
Sounds like an interesting day! Glad you survived the trip to the farm too.
So were they giving away prizes for donating your body? Maybe that would have generated more interest. *grin*
This is exactly like the one I went to in SF. I agree that it was very fascinating.
DH really wants to go see the one here in Atlanta. Me? Not so much but I will go just so that he gets to see it. I don't think I'd be able to handle seeing the fetuses or the pregnant woman. Actually, I'm not sure how I'll handle the whole thing.
We've definitely decided not to eat before going LOL.
The mere thought of this, and especially the photo, makes me gag. Not out of any sort of moral objection. I just have a weak stomach.
It sounds like a really interesting place. I think I'd love to go there.
I don't think I could handle a display like that.
*sits with HD*
*sits with HD and Nutz*
Here are some links that I believe will be interested
I like it! Keep up the good work. Thanks for sharing this wonderful site with us.
»
Post a Comment