Plastinarium And The Joie De Vivre
Another one from the archives. Originally published between 2015-2017.
If Ireland is scandalized by the hundreds of infant bodies given to universities, it cannot comfortably host the upcoming Real Bodies exhibition without facing up to the origins of the pieces on display.
The plastified bodies in these exhibitions usually come from China - a country that not only executes extraordinary numbers of civilians but in parallel runs a national organ harvesting operation. This is not dystopian sci-fi, this is reality. Or rather, if it is dystopian sci-fi, it is because we live in that fucked-up sci-fi world.
The exhibition website says "This powerful exhibition explores life by displaying real, perfectly preserved human bodies and more anatomical specimens. More than a simple display of human specimens, REAL BODIES will connect audiences to a deeper sense of what it means to be alive."
Fourteen bodies will be on display, together with 200 unique anatomical specimens. There is no certainty that they are the remnants of executed prisoners. Equally there is no certainty that they are the remains of accident victims, elderly and sick volunteers or donors. In fact, the only certainty is that the specimens are Real.
According to the site "REAL BODIES digs deeper into the beauty of the body, mind, and soul than any other exhibition of its kind, and invites you to explore the entire human experience from the first breath to the last." This is an odd statement for an exhibition based around anatomy, but the company that runs the exhibitions (an American organisation called Imagine Exhibitions) does not purport to being an educational establishment. It claims to be "the global resource for all aspects of exhibitions and attractions. From design to creation, placement to presentation, marketing and operations, Imagine has the experience and inspiration to bring the best possible experience to any venue."
That said, the promotional material does make some direct educational claims, such as "The use of real human bodies and anatomical specimens is an invaluable tool for teaching students about anatomy in ways that cannot be replicated using a standard textbook. In this tasteful, yet detailed, exhibition the themes of lifestyle and healthy living can be presented to all age groups either on their own, or using guided teaching tools, activity sheets, and docents to help."
The first sentence is true. Medical departments in universities the world over are full of cadavers: fresh, not so fresh, dissected, in bits and waiting for further probing, cutting, sawing and sewing - and plastified bodies have in fact become standard teaching tools of the medical trade. Unfortunately, amid the talk about ´lifestyle and healthy living´ and the ´emotional and cultural aspect´ of being a human being, there is precious little said about the lifestyle and healthy living of prisoners of conscience waiting to be executed for being members of a banned organisation such as Falun Gong. Whether the exhibition is tasteful is up for debate, but taste is not a question of ethics.
The pedagogic hard sell continues: "REAL BODIES will resonate with visitors studying various areas of discipline including biology, anatomy, massage, medicine, dentistry, art, anthropology, psychology, and visitors who simply want to learn more about what it means to be alive!" Surely anyone studying biology, anatomy, massage, medicine, dentistry, art, anthropology, psychology etc. can look forward to more expert tuition at their respective institutions. And common sense tells us that we would be hard-pressed to find an event less informative about the joie de vivre than an exhibition of skinned or partly skinned cadavers.
As for the claim "the themes of lifestyle and healthy living can be presented to all age groups": Parents tempted to bring their children to this macabre show might do better by bringing the little ones to the park to play with other children or to a nature reserve - or even the beach or a football match. Reassurance that the plastinated toys on display are the remnants of people that bequeathed their bodies to science would be something. But it is hard to avoid thinking that granny probably sold her body to a traveling freak show in order pay for the last few months of medical bills. How do you explain that to a kid?
On The Origins Of Specimens
The very first exhibition of plastified bodies was organised by the man that invented the process of plastination, Gunther Von Hagens (see -http://www.bodyworlds.com/en/gunther_von_hagens/life_in_science.html). The exhibition was called Body Worlds and is the spiritual (and very physical) originator of all the shows that followed, including the Real Bodies exhibition in Dublin. Hagens´ career has been steeped in controversy but the Body World website claims that all of the bodies used in the exhibitions come from willing doners. See http://www.bodyworlds.com/en/exhibitions/questions_answers.html. Significant counterclaims for earlier exhibitions are made here https://www.theguardian.com/world/2004/jan/23/arts.china.
Hagens now runs the Hagens Plastination Institute, the world´s biggest suppliers of plastified body parts for the medical profession. The institute website says "In historic facilities renovated to fit the high German standards of environmental protection and hygene, Dr. Gunther von Hagens has created the first Anatomy Plastination centre in the world to have the best environment for education and manufacturing." No mention about the high German standards in pornography. Hagens also created an exhibit of plastified bodies having sex: http://metro.co.uk/2009/09/08/von-hagens-saws-up-sex-corpses-393031/ You can learn more about Hagens´ gooey world of bodies at all three of his websites - www.bodyworlds.com, http://www.vonhagens-plastination.com and http://www.plastinarium.de/
Back to the Real Bodies exhibition in Dublin and its extravagant claims. "REAL BODIES takes visitors on a journey asking them to explore who they are, where they come from and what they choose to do with the life and body they have been given." While you ponder the answers to these vital conundrums you might do well to ask similar, but less reflexive questions, such as - Who are they? Where do they come from? and did they - with the lives and bodies they were given - choose to end up here? Feel free to direct the questions to the addresses on this web page - http://www.imagineexhibitions.com/Contacts/tabid/287/language/en-US/Default.aspx There is no accessible statement about the origins of the cadavers on the rest of the official website.
If you do decide to go along to the show, it may be worth reading the disclaimer that accompanies a similar exhibition hosted by a company called Premier Exhibitions - http://www.premierexhibitions.com/exhibitions/4/4/bodies-exhibition/bodies-exhibition-disclaimer
Bodies The Exhibition Disclaimer (Transcript)
This exhibit displays human remains of Chinese citizens or residents which were originally received by the Chinese Bureau of Police. The Chinese Bureau of Police may receive bodies from Chinese prisons. Premier cannot independently verify that the human remains you are viewing are not those of persons who were incarcerated in Chinese prisons.
This exhibit displays full body cadavers as well as human body parts, organs, fetuses and embryos that come from cadavers of Chinese citizens or residents. With respect to the human parts, organs, fetuses and embryos you are viewing, Premier relies solely on the representations of its Chinese partners and cannot independently verify that they do not belong to persons executed while incarcerated in Chinese prisons.
Will the people responsible for the exhibit in Dublin put up a similar disclaimer? Or even better, a stronger one stating where the bodies were optained and under what conditions - and with the added assurance that not one body or part was once that of a person killed by state execution.
GS