Body Worlds

Body Worlds (German title: Körperwelten) is a travelling exhibition of preserved human bodies and body parts, prepared with a technique called plastination to reveal inner organs or structures. Its developer and promoter is German anatomist Gunther von Hagens, who invented the plastination technique. The exhibition, first presented in Tokyo in 1995, has been shown in many cities in Europe and Asia; the catalogue for the North American tour of the exhibition, which began in Los Angeles in 2004, claims that more than 15 million people have seen Body Worlds (and a second traveling show, Body Worlds 2) between 1995 and early 2004.

Related Topics:
German - Travelling exhibition - Plastination - Anatomist - Gunther von Hagens - Tokyo - 1995 - Los Angeles - 2004

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One of the self-declared goals of the exhibition is the education of laymen about the human body, leading to better health awareness. Several full body specimen show the nervous system, the system of blood vessels, the muscles, and the inner organs. One exhibit compares the lungs of a smoker and a non-smoker. Prosthetics such as artificial hip joints or heart valves are shown embedded in real bodies. Human fetuses in various stages of development are also shown. All exhibits are accompanied with detailed descriptions.

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The shows have been surrounded by controversy for a number of reasons. Von Hagens prepared some "artistic" exhibits, such as a man carrying his own skin (based on a 16th century drawing by Gaspar Becerra); a man on horseback holding his brain in one hand, the horse's brain in the other; or a man kneeling in prayer, holding his heart in his hands. These are seen by some as denigrating the deceased. Some religious groups object to any public exhibition of human corpses. Others accuse von Hagens of sensationalism. Supporters counter that all displayed people did sign over their bodies to von Hagens.

Related Topics:
16th century - Gaspar Becerra

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There have been allegations that von Hagens used the bodies of executed Chinese prisoners. These have been backed up by documents from the corpse-processing facility in Dalian, in northeastern China. Further controversy surrounds von Hagen's use of the professor title he obtained from the University of Dalian. In January 2004, the Düsseldorf Ministry of Science officially forbade him from using the title in future publications.

Related Topics:
Dalian - China - University of Dalian - Düsseldorf

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Von Hagens maintains strict copyright control over pictures of his exhibits. Visitors are not allowed to take pictures, and press photographers have to sign agreements permitting only one publication in a strictly defined context, followed by return of the copyright to von Hagens. Because of this, a German press organization has suggested that the press refrain from reporting about the exhibition altogether.

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In 2003, officials of Munich tried to prohibit the exhibition there, arguing that it violate human dignity and laws regulating burials. Von Hagens appealed and managed to obtain a temporary injunction allowing the exhibition but requiring that the artistic exhibits mentioned above be covered.

Related Topics:
2003 - Munich

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The exhibition in Hamburg in 2003 took place in the rooms of an erotic art museum on the Reeperbahn. Initial objections of a local official to the artistic exhibits were overruled by officials of the Hamburg Senate.

Related Topics:
Hamburg - 2003 - Reeperbahn

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