Under your skin -- Exhibit gives the inside view of real human 'Bodies'

By: PAM KRAGEN - Staff Writer | Saturday, May 5, 2007 7:40 PM PDT ∞

Curious about how all your internal organs fit together? Want to see what smoking can do to your lungs? Ever wondered what a prostate looks like? How about how babies develop in the womb?

Then you'll want to visit "Bodies ... The Exhibition," which opens Saturday for a summerlong engagement at La Jolla's Westfield UTC mall (inside the former Robinsons-May department store).

Spending a few hours in the company of skinned human corpses may sound like an encounter only a "CSI" forensics team could love. But over the last 2 1/2 years, more than 3 million people worldwide have lined up and paid for the experience at "Bodies."

Launched in England in the fall of 2004, "Bodies" is a 25,000-square-foot exhibit that features more than 250 real human body specimens and organs. Meticulously dissected, preserved in polymer and displayed in lifelike poses, these bodies have quite a story to tell about what we all look like underneath our skin. It's all done in an accessible, educational and, yes, family-friendly way.

Over the years, more than 250,000 schoolchildren (ages kindergarten and up) have visited "Bodies," say exhibit organizers.

The success of "Bodies" has taken even its organizers by surprise. Dr. Roy Glover, who taught anatomy at the University of Michigan Medical School for 36 years and holds a patent for one of the organ preservation processes used in "Bodies," said in a recent interview that he's thrilled by how the public has embraced the show.

"I'm a person who has a passion for anatomy and human biology, and I'm really excited to see that others are catching on to this as well," said Glover, who retired from teaching in 2004 to become the chief medical adviser for "Bodies."

Preserved human bodies and organs are nothing new. The science of indefinitely preserving human tissue by replacing the body's fluids with liquid silicone rubber was developed in the late 1970s in Europe as a way for medical schools to extend the teaching "life" of their cadavers.

But only in recent years have the bodies made their way out of the classrooms and into art museums and public spaces.

While visitors have flocked to "Bodies" and other dissected body exhibitions, the show has not been received without controversy. Some critics find the skinned, posed corpses grotesque, and the display of the nude figures disrespectful.

"There are people out there who feel we shouldn't be doing this," Glover said, "but they don't ever visit, so we don't have the opportunity to engage them in a conversation about how they feel and work to come to an understanding."

Glover said the majority of visitors, even the most reluctant, are won over within minutes of entering "Bodies" because the figures are presented respectfully and the exhibit is educationally based.

"You never can tell how it will affect people," he said. "Some people who come are comfortable about what they'll be seeing, and they're fine. Others come with some anxiety, but it disappears after they see how complicated and beautiful the body is. They imagine they're looking at themselves, so they take a great deal of interest."

"Bodies ... the Exhibition" is spread out in nine rooms, with each room representing a different body system (digestive, respiratory, endocrine).

Most popular is the circulatory system room, where the internal passageways of the lungs and kidneys have been injected with colorful polymers. The surrounding tissue has been melted away, leaving only the preserved passageways, which look like tiny tree branches or fingers of tropical coral.

The same technique is used to preserve some of the body's 60,000-mile network of blood vessels (removed from the body, the vessels look like a dense, red human-shaped tumbleweed).

Also of great interest to visitors are the pathological specimens ---- bodies and organs that show the effects of disease and poor lifestyle choices.

A pitch-black brain shows the dramatic impact of a stroke. A dark, pebbly, shrunken cirrhotic liver shows the effects of chronic alcoholism.

There's a kidney choked with stones, bones misshapen by arthritis and osteoporosis, cancerous breast tissue, plaque-filled arteries and an ectopic pregnancy.

The charcoal-gray lungs of a smoker are so disturbing, Glover said, that many visiting smokers give up the habit on the spot (a plexiglass trash bin is stationed next to the polluted lungs to hold discarded tobacco products).

"We've collected a lot of cigarette cartons over the years," Glover said. "If we can just get people into a mode where they're thinking about their bodies more, we can change the whole climate of body education and teach children when they're young how to take care of their bodies."

Another exhibit shows a human body transformed through modern surgical wizardry, with an artificial knee and hip, steel-rod bone replacements and steel and plastic brain plates.

The reproductive/urinary system room is especially popular with older adults. Glover said men are curious about the prostate and how its size affects bladder functions. And women are interested in seeing the uterus and cancerous breast tissue.

Because some viewers and families with small children may be uncomfortable viewing dead fetuses in this section of the exhibit, a door is installed that allows visitors to bypass that room. But one thing that doesn't seem to upset any viewers is the inclusion of genitalia on the full-body figures.

"It's not an issue," Glover said. "The body is made up of various systems, and the reproductive system is just one of them. We don't get any complaints. If people ask, we say the body is the star and we simply display the body without covering anything up."

To help visitors get the most out of the exhibit, "Bodies" offers extensive written information with each specimen, an optional catalog and audio guide (narrated by Glover), and teacher's guides for different grade levels.

Glover recommends visitors plan a visit of at least 90 minutes to two hours to get the most out of "Bodies" and that even if they're squeamish, they should give the exhibit a try.

"At the very first exhibit in England, I saw an older couple where the wife appeared to be dragging her reluctant husband along," Glover recalls. "She wanted to see the exhibit and he vowed he would only take a brisk walk through and wait for his wife at the end. Three hours later, they were both still there and enjoying every minute."

As visitors leave "Bodies ... the Exhibition" they can pick up a brochure on organ or body donation. Glover said that more than 2,500 people have filled out applications to donate their organs or tissue to science after visiting "Bodies," a statistic that makes him especially proud.

"We do get hundreds of names from each of our venues," Glover said. "If only a small fraction of those agree to be in the donor database, that's rewarding to me. I think this exhibition goes a long way toward encouraging people to be lifelong learners about their bodies, and I love being a part of that."

Contact staff writer Pam Kragen at (760) 631-6626 or pkragen@nctimes.com.

WHAT:"Bodies ... The Exhibition"

WHEN: Opens May 12 for a limited engagement; hours, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sundays-Thursdays; 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays

WHERE: Westfield UTC mall (in the former Robinsons-May department store), 4425 La Jolla Village Drive, San Diego

TICKETS: $26.50, adults; $21, seniors (62 and up); $18, children (5 to 12); $6, audio guide; group and student discounts available

INFO: (877) 263-4375 (or 877-BODIES-5); www.bodiestickets.com