Body Worlds RX: An Exhibit that leaves the insides exposed - literally

Before you read this, I feel obligated to issue a warning. This post looks at the Body Worlds RX exhibit currently on at the Nova Scotia Museum of Natural History (until April 22). This travelling exhibit "offers visitors the unique opportunity to explore the amazing biology and physiology of human health and the dramatic effects of disease."

It features human bodies that have undergone plastination. Plastination is a "complex technique that removes the fluids from the body and replaces that with plastics that harden." My knowledge of how it works is limited to that statement.

I really couldn't resist! Created using Meme Generator

There will also not be very many pictures in this post as the exhibit does not allow pictures to be taken of the displays.

Javelin Thrower, Body Worlds RX (Nove Scotia Museum of Natural History)

The exhibit is in a tight space, but it is very intimate, with black walls and the exhibits lit from behind.

Body Worlds RX, Nova Scotia Museum of Natural History (Rebecca Lau, Global News).
The way it is designed and lit makes it very intimate and respectful.

These displays give you a detailed look at healthy and diseased organs. One of the most interesting ones was a set of cancerous lungs, cut in a way you could see the tumour. Others showed the effects of dementia, obesity, arthritis, and how muscles move.

But one of the most impressive displays showed all the arteries and veins of the human body shaped like a human body so you can see where they actually sit in the body. To be clear, there was no other piece to this display, just the arteries and veins against a black background. Amazing.

The exhibit has actually brought in more high school students to the museum, specifically to this exhibit, then they have had in the past 10 years!

I wanted to talk about this exhibit for two reasons:

1. It closes at the Nova Scotia Museum of Natural History on April 22, so there is not a whole lot of time left to go see it. If you are able, I highly recommend taking a trip over but be warned, weekends have long lines to see this exhibit. So plan accordingly.

2. Currently, on PEI we do not have a spot where you could see something like this. You have to go elsewhere and those trips are expensive! By the time you pay for the bridge, gas (assuming you have a vehicle), and food you could be looking at over $150. More if you have kids. So I wanted to "put a bug in your ear" about this fact and how valuable such a place could be - A Provincial Museum, for example. But that will be the topic of a future post...trust me.

Back to Body Worlds RX.

One of the most interesting aspects of this exhibit is that it opened without controversy. Keep in mind that the exhibit was created using human corpses. When the Body Worlds series first went into circulation, it was highly controversial.

There were issues over how the cadavers were obtained. For the Body Worlds RX exhibit, the creators guaranteed all full bodies exhibited came from Europeans or Americans who gave written permission for their bodies to be used in this process. Others confused the exhibition with Bodies...The Exhibition, where they were open about the fact the displays did not come from willing donors.

Some, such as Calgary's Bishop Fred Henry wrote in 2010, when a similar exhibit visited Calgary, that the exhibit crossed the line from education to entertainment. But when Body Worlds RX came to Halifax, it wasn't met with controversy. However, times have changed since the Body Worlds exhibit series began in the late 90's and the educational value of the exhibit is more recognized.

Museums are for everyone and Body Worlds RX is one of those exhibits that have mass appeal. If you are able to get to Halifax before the 22nd, or get a chance to see it in another city, I highly recommend going.

The Nova Scotia Museum of Natural History is located at
1747 Summer Street
Halifax, NS
B3H 3A6

If you want to learn more about plastination or the Body Worlds exhibit series, you can visit the Body Worlds website, https://bodyworlds.com/.

Additional Sources

"Body Worlds RX." Nova Scotia Museum of Natural History. From https://naturalhistory.novascotia.ca/body-worlds-rx

Bundale, Brett. "Body Worlds exhibit of plastinated corpses opens without controversy in Halifax." January 11, 2018. From The Globe and Mail (originally published in The Canadian Press). From https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/body-worlds-exhibit-of-plastinated-corpses-opens-without-controversy-in-halifax/article37571070/

Fortney, Valerie. "With sex positions and fetus cadavers, Body Worlds still draws controversy." Calgary Herald. January 15, 2016. From http://calgaryherald.com/news/local-news/fortney-with-sex-positions-and-fetus-cadavers-body-worlds-exhibit-still-courting-controversy

Lau, Rebecca. "Body Worlds RX exhibit featuring preserved human bodies in Atlantic Canada for 1st time." Global News. January 11, 2018. From https://globalnews.ca/news/3958987/body-worlds-exhibit-atlantic-canada/

Spurr, Bill. "Body Worlds RX peels back the skin on human anatomy." The Chronicle Herald. January 12, 2018. From http://thechronicleherald.ca/metro/1535824-video-photos-body-worlds-rx-exhibit-peels-back-the-skin-on-human-anatomy

Ulaby, Neda. "Origins of Exhibited Cadavers Questioned." August 11, 2006. Heard on All Things Considered. From https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5637687