Body Worlds and the Mirror of Time - O2 Bubble
Preview by Lizzie Guilfoyle
FOLLOWING the success of the Tutankhamun exhibition, the O2 Bubble is hosting the premiere of Dr Gunther von Hagens’ amazing installation Body Worlds and the Mirror of Time – until Friday, July 31, 2009.
However, unlike the mummified bodies in the Tutankhamun exhibition, Body Worlds and the Mirror of Time features preserved human and animal bodies that have been coated in plastic, rather than wrapped up in muslin.
Using the latest scientific advancements, Dr Gunther has created another series of fantastic body sculptures using parts of the human body, such as bone, tissue and ligaments, that have been plastinated. Thus they are perfectly preserved in their organic state.
The first Body Worlds exhibition came to Earls Court in 2006, since when Dr Gunther has installed his body slices on permanent show at the Wellcome Collection.
Each of the Body Worlds shows has focused on different aspects of bodies, and the theme of the new exhibition is the aging process and how it affects the human and animal body. Taking the journey of human life from conception to death, Body Worlds and the Mirror of Time examines the effects life has on the body, and how cells, bone, muscles, blood and skin continue to change in an effort to help preserve and maintain life.
Certain to be one of the most unusual and exciting exhibitions in London this year, Body Worlds and the Mirror of Time also fulfills a very important scientific function. By alllowing Dr Gunther and his scientists access to these bodies that are specifically donated to his cause, the anatomist can learn valuable scientific lessons.
And rather than dwell on the mortality of human life, Dr Gunther hopes that everyone who visits the exhibition will be inspired by the amazing structure of the body, and will take away a desire to live life to the full.
The O2 Bubble, Millennium Way, London, SE10 0B