New exhibition offers unique look at the human body

EDMONTON- A new exhibition at the Telus World of Science showcases the human body as it’s never been seen before.

Body Worlds & The Cycle of Life opened Saturday. It’s a new version of Gunther von Hagens’ Body Worlds anatomical exhibition, which was seen by 270,000 visitors during its four month run in Edmonton in 2008.

Body Worlds & The Cycle of Life takes a unique look at the human body, from conception and pre-natal development through maturity and advanced age.

“There’s more than 200 real specimens from real human bodies, as well as 20 full-body plastinates,” said Mike Steger, vice president of marketing and communications at Telus World of Science.

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Individual organs and systems are also part of the exhibition. The 20 full-body plastinates are displayed in various action poses, including hockey players, a baseball player, a ballet dancer, ice skaters, and a woman executing a yoga pose.

“It’s displayed in a way that tells a really powerful story,” Steger said. “and like any good story, there’s a beginning, a middle and an end. And as you go through the exhibit it really just brings you in and shows you every part of the human body.”

The real specimens showcase the complexity, resilience and vulnerability of the human body in distress, disease and optimal health. Because of that, Steger says everyone will find something in the exhibit that they can connect with.

“Everybody has some ailment or a disease that’s affected their family and they can really see it up close and see how that works and what the impact is.”

The exhibit debuted in Chicago last year, and Edmonton is the first city in Canada to host The Cycle of Life.

“We are excited to once again provoke conversations between family members, questions from children, and in many, a newfound interest in their own personal health,” said George Smith, president and CEO of Telus World of Science

For more information on the exhibit, visit the Telus World of Science’s website.
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