'Bodies' gets under the skin of science

Famous and controversial for using real human cadavers, "Bodies…The Exhibition" is once again on display in Seattle, meant to capture a "phenomenal look at the phenomenon we call the human body," according to the Web site.

The exhibit has been banned in several cities and countries but has still drawn more than 11 million visitors worldwide. Attendance reached 350,000 the last time it came to Seattle, making Seattle one of the more profitable cities in the world for Premier Exhibitions, the company putting on the exhibit. This is part of the reason why Premier decided to bring the exhibit back to Seattle—to hopefully rake in more revenue and make up for its net loss the past several years.


"Bodies" features cadavers preserved in polymer and applied with a catalyst allowing the bodies to be hard or flexible, depending on how it will be displayed. The arduous process can often take up to a year to finish, but using real human cadavers is meant to show how the human body really works, whether the cadaver is kicking a ball and showing leg muscles or dancing with another cadaver.


New to the exhibit this year is a cancerous breast showcased alongside several other diseased organs, such as a liver affected with cirrhosis and a smoker's lungs. Next to the smoker's lungs, the exhibit purposely places a healthy lung—beside an empty box with a slot for visitors to dump their cigarettes in.

Margie Fishbaugh, a mother of two boys, said she was "hoping the exhibit would be more kid-friendly."


"They talk about it as if it was serving education," Fishbaugh said. "It does, but it has potential to become even more educational by gearing it toward children."


Still, schools and universities are also trying to cash in on its educational aspect.

Students from diverse fields have been grateful for the opportunities that "Bodies" gives them. Alex Walker, an art major at Seattle Central Community College, was thrilled to get the chance to actually draw the insides of a human body.


"You're not allowed to take pictures during the exhibit, but you're allowed to spend hours in there and draw," Walker said. "And it was better than any faux human skeleton in front of me."


More than 17,000 school children visited "Bodies" during its last run in Seattle.


During an educator's preview time, many teachers and professors around the Seattle area were welcome to preview the exhibit and determine whether or not they should bring their students.

"I think the exhibit is respectfully and tastefully done," said Margaret Hudson, an anatomy and biology professor at Seattle University.


Hudson plans to take some of her students to the exhibit as an optional educational trip.

Although the exhibit has been very popular in Seattle, not all audiences meet it with support.


During its first Seattle showing in 2006, "Bodies" was met with local protestors and controversy.

Capitol Hill's Museum of the Mysteries filed a lawsuit against "Bodies," contending that the exhibit was using unclaimed Chinese bodies for sale. Though Premier Exhibitions has admitted to using the unclaimed bodies, they had the legal right to do so through a law which allows unclaimed bodies to be given to science. The Chinese government at the time had also donated the cadavers, since no one had claimed them upon their deaths.

Attention has since drifted from the lawsuit, but members of the Seattle Chinese community spoke out on the usage of Chinese citizens and were critical of the fact that a majority of the bodies are Chinese.


"From a cultural perspective, especially since a number of the cadavers are from China, it feels like a gross violation," said Bettie Luke, who works with various Seattle Chinese American groups, to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. "The willful use of putting a body on indefinite display like that condemns the soul to wander the netherworld with no chance to rest."


Despite the protestors and controversy, Seattle has been one of the more welcoming cities for "Bodies," where the exhibit plans to run until March 2010.


"Bodies…The Exhibition" is open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 10 a.m. through 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Tickets can be purchased at www.bodiestickets.com.