BODIES... The Exhibition

"BODIES...The Exhibition" is a controversial exhibition showcasing preserved human bodies dissected to display bodily systems. It opened in Tampa, Florida on August 20, 2005^[1]. It is similar to, though not affiliated with, the exhibition Body Worlds (which opened in 1995). BODIES... is currently showing in Buenos Aires, Barcelona, Cincinnati, Branson, Columbus, Prague, Lisbon, Pittsburgh, San Diego, Las Vegas, New York, Fort Lauderdale, and Washington D.C.

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Exhibit Organization

The museum is set up so that one starts at the skeletal system, and more layers (muscular, nervous, circulatory, digestive, respiratory, urinary, and reproductive systems; as well as fetal development and the treated body) are added in successive rooms. Containing about twenty bodies in total, each exhibition uses real human bodies that have been preserved permanently by a process called "polymer preservation" so that they will not decay. This exhibition is organized by the publicly traded corporation, Premier Exhibitions Incorporated (ticker symbol:PRXI ), which also staged Bodies Revealed in Seoul, South Korea. The cadavers were donated for research by the Chinese government, because all the bodies at the time of death allegedly had no close next of kin or immediate families to claim the bodies (see Criticism). All of the dissections took place at the Dalian University in Liaoning, China and the resulting specimens were leased to Premier Exhibitions for the five-year duration of the show.

Some of the specimens are arranged so that they are performing activities such as playing basketball or conducting an orchestra. Along the way are other displays showing a human intestine stretched out, the polluted lung of a smoker, and all of the arteries and veins without the body itself. One section includes several fetuses in various stages of development. All of the fetuses died due to miscarriages, and the disorders which caused each are highlighted.

How the Bodies are Preserved

Main article: Plastination

The bodies are prevented from decay by a means of a rubberization process patented in the 1970s by anatomist Gunther von Hagens. The essence of the process is the replacement of water and fatty material in the cells of the body first by acetone and then by plastics, such as silicone rubber, polyester or epoxy resin.

Criticism

Questions regarding the origins of the bodies continue to be raised. Reporting from Dalian, China for the NYTimes, David Barboza described"a ghastly new underground mini-industry" with "little government oversight, an abundance of cheap medical school labor and easy access to cadavers and organs."

Premier, Inc. representatives openly admit the cadavers are not donated. State Anatomical boards have objected that without state or federal laws “you have no documentation of who this is”. The Director of North Carolina State Board of Funeral Services stated "Somebody at some level of government ought to be able to look at a death certificate, a statement from an embalmer, donation documents. That's a reasonable standard to apply." The Florida Anatomical board fought the Tampa exhibit.Its Director said the exhibit should be shut down. The Florida Attorney General agreedthe State Anatomical board’s approval should be required. The exhibit at the Tampa Museum of Science and Industry opened two days early.

San Francisco Health Inspectors became alarmed when plastinated bodies began leaking and Chinese American groups there protested. City Supervisor Fiona Ma, stated that "Chinese culture is very religious and superstitious regarding death and the display of dead bodies." and later introduced a San Francisco ordinance on corpse exhibits. After protests in Seattle, Washington State is considering a bill to ban exhibits of bodies without clear documentation of consent.In Pittsburgh, Elaine Catz quit her job of 11 years as science education coordinator for the Carnegie Museum of Science after what two years of professional scientific research into bodies exhibits showed her.

Professional ethicists, Human Rights activists and religious leaders have also objected. "Given the (Chinese) government's track record on the treatment of prisoners, I find this exhibit deeply problematic," said Sharon Hom, the executive director of the advocacy group Human Rights in China. Professor Anita Allen, a University of Pennsylvania bioethicist, argued spending to "gawk" at human remains should raise serious concerns. Thomas Hibbs, Baylor University ethicist, compares cadaver displays to pornography in that they reduce the subject to “the manipulation of body parts stripped of any larger human significance.” Even if consent were to be obtained, Rabbi Danny Schiff maintains that we should still question what providing "bodies arranged in showcases for a hungry public"says about a society. Harry Wu, long time human rights activist who spent 19 years in prison for his role in Tiannamen Square, terms the practice of obtaining exhibit specimens from China “immoral”. Mr. Wu describes how the Chinese label of 'unclaimed' on bodies may imply that families were not notified of the death.

Regarding the educational concerns around these exhibits, in Portland, Rabbi Daniel Isaak argued the value. North Carolina Superintendent of Public Instruction would not recommend this material for school field trips. St. Louis Diocese Archbishop Raymond Burke directs Catholic Schools there to avoid field trips, citing serious questions for Catholics. Concerned with how 'some kids process' these 'graphic' images, Abbotsford, British Columbia School Superintendent barred field trips to exhibits of plasticized human beings. Rev. Christoph Reiners questions the effect on the values of children. Elaine Catz, who helped coordinate field trips for the Carnegie Science Center, maintains "It teaches that, once he is deceased, there is nothing wrong with taking a person's body without his consent; It teaches that there is nothing wrong with exploiting the dead in order to make a profit, as long as it is in the name of science or education or art. It teaches that it is incredibly easy to dehumanize others".

• No Bodies 4 Profit protest website
• Anti-BODIES Virtual Protest Site
• DignityinBoston Protest website
• Protest in Columbus OH, video.