I was in Dallas this week, and was fortunate to see the installment of BODY WORLDS at the Dallas Museum of Nature and Science.
The show is hard to describe. For those who are unfamiliar, the installation is a collection of cadavers that have been preserved in dynamic poses through the use of a process called Plastination. Plastination replaces the fluids and fat in a body with a fluid plastic. The bodies are also often dissected, bisected, spearated by bodily system (respiratory, reproductive, nervous, etc.) in the name of displaying and explaining the human body. Included in the display are also comparisons of healthy and diseased organs, as well as "slices" of bodies showing a cross section of the body. An example was full body slices that compare a healthy body to an obese one.
Throughout the exhibit were large silkscreened panels featuring the anatomical drawings of Durer, Da Vinci, Michaelangelo, etc., along with quotes from artists, philosophers and scientists through history commenting on the study of the body, the miracle of the human machine. For me it was a rationalization to viewing the exhibit as an artist, but I have to admit the notoriety of the show also drew me in.
As I viewed the show I tried to be an objective observer, distancing myself from the displays. But then a small detail like eyelashes, or fingernails would say to me "Sorry, bub, you don't get away that easily. These "displays" were living, breathing humans that have had their organs, entrails, bones and most private inner workings split apart and spread out for all the world to see."
An amazing exhibit. If one of the installations comes to your area I recommend going to see it. There were many kids and families when I was there. The Museum provided a brochure suggesting how a to discuss the exhibit with your children.
website: www.bodyworlds.com (http://www.bodyworlds.com)

Sounds like the show they have in Seattle at the Pacific Science Center.

Sounds like the show they have in Seattle at the Pacific Science Center.

I checked the website - didn't see Seattle listed. Portland was on the upcoming list.

It was even featured in the new Bond film!

My bad, different venue, same city-

http://www.bodiestheexhibition.com/

btw- John, I have been working on a Rif-Raf Spitsfire, you'll love it....or not.....

btw- John, I have been working on a Rif-Raf Spitsfire, you'll love it....or not.....

I just noticed the Messaschnitzel in my stockpiles the other day.

im sorry, but i just cant get behind the whole thing. i own a human skull for research purposes, but somehow for me this goes beyond the pale.

Of course they're beyond pale, they have NO blood at all!

This exhibit is the one thing that I would actually consider protesting. The cadavers were aquired from China. The problem is that you don't know exactly what the crime the deceased was accused of to get executed. I can't get behind that.

A friend of mine spent some time looking at the exhibit a year ago and told me about how it really effected his perceptions of people. He ended up seeing people as objects afterwards. At least for a little while.

If the exhibit was made out of sculpted material I wouldn't mind. It's just the fact that there were living being at one point that really rips at the artistry of the the show. This art is an exercise in destructive, rather than constructive sculpture.

You should probably give it to me since you won't ever get to it. BTW, Is Hiway Hobbies closing?

I just noticed the Messaschnitzel in my stockpiles the other day.

The cadavers on display are all from people who donated their bodies, signing documents not unlike organ donor forms. They know fully well that their bodies will be put on display in this manner.

I was telling a friend who is a nurse about the exhibition. She said that during her studies she became more spiritual. Her feeling was that how the body lives, grows, heals, reproduces is nothing short of miraculous.
I was also talking to Ray Heim (of HauntedDimensions.com) about it, and his feeling was along the same lines, that seeing the exhibition was a profoundly spiritual experience.

I didn't see people as objects afterwards, but it made me more aware of the fraility and preciousness of human life. There were some bodies that were obviously young, healthy (judging by the muscule tone) people when they died. And the displays of the organs damaged by smoke, obesity, alcohol, etc. certainly brought home the fact that we are responsible for our own well being.

The aspect that bothered me the most was that some of the poses and dissections looked more theatrical than educational.

I know this exhibit has been controversial. I haven't seen it, but on principle, I don't find the concept any more ghoulish or unethical than the public display of ancient mummies or skeletal remains. It would please me to know that someone might derive some educational benefit from my body once I'm finished with it! Though I do plan to hang on to it for a few more years.

BTW, Is Hiway Hobbies closing?

Not so far. They just started up a comic book section, groping for ways to keep the place in business. Anthony's very pessimistic about the state of the plastic model business, but he's trying like hell to keep ther place afloat with other hobbies.

Weren't there a couple of bodies pulled from the exhibit because museum-goers noticed bullet holes? Or is that just an urban legend?