Tomorrow night, why not consider joining me and Morbid Anatomy scholar in residence (and star of TV's "Oddities") Evan Michelson at Coney Island for her new lecture "A Gathering of Bones?" If her former lectures are any indication, this is sure to be a great one!

The event--which will take place within the newly opened Great Coney Island Spectacularium!--begins at 7:30. Drinks are half price at the bar until 8:00. Hope very very much to see you there!

"A Gathering of Bones," an Illustrated lecture by Evan Michelson
Date: Monday, April 11
Time: 7:30 PM
Admission: $5 (or free with Congressional Pass)
Location: The Coney Island Museum (1208 Surf Avenue)

Human bone: one of the most common materials on the planet. And yet, at one time the remains of certain individuals were prized more highly than the rarest, most precious metals and gems. The cult of the saints, the backbone of the early Christian Church, gave rise to an institutional fetishization of human remains that produced objects still unsurpassed in craftsmanship and opulence.

The aesthetic of the most humble and commo...n organic remains coupled with gold, silver, gems and textiles has for centuries proved irresistible to secular collectors and religious institutions alike. The ultimate collectible, the constituent parts of each and every human on the planet were once the object of obsession, veneration and murderous desire. As a collector myself, Christian relics provided my earliest exposure to the realm of transcendently beautiful, perverse and venerated objects.

The collection and categorization of human remains underwent a drastic change with the enlightenment, but the unquenchable human thirst for knowledge and comfort in the face of our own mortality has ensured that the corpus remains at the center of an unending human fascination with and confrontation of the greatest mystery of all. The gathering of bones continues to this day, still controversial, decadent and utterly essential to the human narrative.

This event is part of The Morbid Anatomy Library Collector Series.

Click here to purchase tickets ($5 each)

This event is made possible, in part, by a grant from the Andy Warhol Foundation.

Image: Galileo's finger mounted on a marble base and encased in a crystal jar, as on view at the Museum of History and Science in Florence, Italy. More on that--and image source--here. Click on image to see much larger, more detailed version.

Clocking in at a mere $3,953, this skeletor belt by Italian designer, Delfina Delettrez, takes “hugging the hips” to new meaning. A great statement piece for any outfit, the beautifully cast hands are almost delicate looking against a soft fabric. How great would this be over a trench coat with a pair of heels this spring/summer?

This clever depiction of the mind of a monster was created by MotherJones‘ Dave Gilson and Steve Brodner. My favorite is the hopemine production in the Racial Ganglia.

For the full-sized image please click here.

Yet another fabulous chart designed by our favorite plush organ designer, iHeartGuts!   This is so much more entertaining (and therefore more likely to be read in a doctor’s office) than those boring anatomical charts.  Just sayin.Ahem, docs.

Doesn’t look like these are for sale at the moment, but hopefully they will be in the future!

I’m curious, what’s your favorite slang for breasts??

Would you believe the items above have been created to support literacy? The back story: in 2008, David Eggers gave a TED talk regarding literacy and the 826 literacy program, which is here in the US and appears to be a great program in a slew of cities across the country. He posed the thought of beginning something similar in London. Many meetings and some great thoughts came and went; 2 years later The Ministry of Stories was born. Design firm we made this worked with the Arts Council and the JJ Charitable Trust to create a fun inviting space:

The Ministry follows the model of the 826 centres: a writing centre where kids aged 8-18 can get one-to-one tuition with professional writers and other volunteers; with the centres being housed behind fantastical shop fronts designed to fire the kids’ imaginations (and generate income for the writing centres).

A shop named Horton Street Monster Supplies is the income generator, and boy do I wish I could stop by and do my part. I would really like some canned Mortal Terror or a jar of Organ Marmalade. This is the greatest idea ever, and I sincerely hope it does well.

Jason Leveque, aka Stuntkid, is at it again. We previously posted  his “Anatomically Correct” series, with its ghostly women. He recently created this clever anatomical nesting doll for an upcoming show at the Rothick Art Haus.

[spotted by Tat and Daniel]

I thought it would be great to compare this version of an anatomical nesting doll, by Kim Hu, with the previous post of Jason Leveque’s nesting doll.

Kim designed this lovely little nesting doll for a graduation project last spring for her Illustration and Design major.  I love that she created more layers of anatomy, down to the tiny skeleton. It’s fantastic!

Guilt

Dried

Bite

Struggling with chronic pain and illness for most of her life has educated and inspired Rachel Kilback to transfer that energy straight into her art.

Rachel says of her work,

I long for freedom. Because of this I create art that has been called “reckless” and “intense”. Look for pain and struggle in my work. Nature features prominently in what I do. Material found in nature becomes integral to explorations of relationships between humans and other animals, as well as the female body and culture.

The works featured above are incredibly detailed representations of vaginas. Notice the sharp “teeth” on the last one, titled “Bite.”

View more of Rachel’s work on her portfolio site, elleavuleloup.ca

Click to view larger

I like people that break from the norm.  A long-time Street Anatomy fan and soon-to-be doctor, Stephen, recently sent in this image of an anatomical heart made up entirely of the words from his dissertation.  He put tons of effort into studying a particular cardiac arrhythmia, noted below the heart, and instead of hanging fancy diplomas on the wall, he chose to immortalize his time and efforts into a piece of anatomical art.

Well done Stephen!

We’ve developed the Total HUman Model for Safety, because we’re all fragile, especially on the inside.  That’s what makes it safer. That’s what makes it a Toyota.

Gorgeous hand-blown glass organs demonstrated the fragility of human life and the steps that Toyota takes to protect it.  The bronchial tree is especially spectacular.

View more videos in Toyota’s Promise Gallery.

[spotted by Bridget]

This is Laura Hughes, a photography student at the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design.

Check out the rest of Skin & Bones and her artist statement for the series here: MIAD-FA382
as well as her tumblr.

As many of you already know, my upcoming exhibition--The Great Coney Island Spectacularium--will be launching with an Obscura Day event on Saturday April 9th (more on that here.) If you are not in New York for Obscura Day, or are in the mood for more anatomical fare, I have just been alerted to a bunch of anatomical-themed events that might be up your alley. All events take place on Saturday, April 9th.

Details follow:

• At the Dittrick Museum where Jim, the Dittrick's Chief Curator, will present a selection of amazing and rare anatomy atlases and surgical works, and Jenny, the Registrar and Archivist, will share a sampling of strange and wonderful objects from the Dittrick artifact collections, with special emphasis upon the history of contraception, a premier collection at the Dittrick. (http://obscuraday-dittrick.eventbrite.com/)
• At the International Museum of Surgical Science, in Chicago the Museum’s curator will present 3D stereoscopic photos, chromolithographs, and a magic lantern show depicting skin diseases in gorgeous, gruesome detail. Visitors can take a look at what lies beneath the surface of the skin in a special exhibition of actual human bodies. (http://obscuraday-imss.eventbrite.com/)
• In Florence, Itlay take an expert tour of La Specola Anatomical Collection. Art and social-historian Sheila Barker, who researches science and medicine in Renaissance Florence, will lead the visit of some of the most spectacular and beautiful anatomical artwork in the world. (http://obscuraday-laspecola.eventbrite.com/)
• In Sydney, Australia go to the Museum of Human Disease, where on Obscura Day you can ask questions of academics and researchers from the University, and participate in discussions and workshops and hear the stories of patients, medical professionals, and loved ones of those with disease." (http://obscuraday-museumhumandisease.eventbrite.com/)

To find out more about these events, and to purchase tickets, click the link following each description.

Image: "Anatomical Venus" Wax wodel with human hair and pearls in rosewood and Venetian glass case, "La Specola" (Museo di Storia Naturale), Florence, Italy " Probably modeled by Clemente Susini (around 1790); From The Secret Museum exhibition.

I have a photograph--sneak preview above--included in the upcoming Naming the Animals exhibition at Curious Matter gallery in Jersey City, New Jersey. The opening--which us free and open to the public--will take place this Sunday, April 3rd, from 3-6.

Full details follow for both this opening at the related opening later in the month at Proteus Gowanus. Hope very much to see you there!

Please join us for two artist receptions to celebrate our special two-part exhibition

NAMING THE ANIMALS
Curious Matter, April 3 to May 15, 2011
Proteus Gowanus, April 16 to July 17, 2011

Sunday, April 3, 2011
3:00 to 6:00 pm
at CURIOUS MATTER
272 Fifth Street, Jersey City, NJ
&
Saturday, April 16, 2011
7:00 to 10:00 pm
at PROTEUS GOWANUS for Paradise III
& Naming the Animals
543 Union Street, Brooklyn, NJ

THE ARTISTS

CURIOUS MATTER: Lasse Antonsen • Julia Whitney Barnes • Jill Marleah Bell • John Bell • Arthur Bruso • Travis Childers • Matthew Cox • Joanna Ebenstein • Veronica Frenning • Patti Jordan • Heather Layton • Ross Bennett Lewis • Carrie Lincourt • Eric Lindveit • Colette Male • Marianne McCarthy • Florence Alfano McEwin • Hans van Meeuwen • Raymond E. Mingst • Elizabeth Misitano • R. Wayne Parsons • Inna Razumova • Debra Regh • Andrew Cornell Robinson

PROTEUS GOWANUS: Kristi Arnold • William Brovelli • Christian Brown • Ryan Browning • Travis Childers • Clair Chinnery • Eileen Ferara • Richard Haymes • Ellie Irons • Katherine McLeod • Suzanne Norris • Melissa Stern • Jennie Suddick • Tricia Zimic

CURIOUS MATTER is an exhibition venue for contemporary visual art located in downtown Jersey City. Curious Matter exhibitions and publications evidence the pursuit to understand and articulate our individual and collective experience of the world, real or imagined. We examine fantastic notions, confounding ideas and audacious thoughts. Curious Matter strives to foster dialogue among artists at all career stages with a calendar of regular exhibitions. Our commitment extends to our audience as we endeavor to open a door to appreciating contemporary art in an atmosphere that encourages engagement and curiosity. Curious Matter is a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas, a non-profit arts service organization.
For more info: [w] curiousmatter.blogspot.com [e] curiousmatter@comcast.net [t] 201-659-5771

DRIVING FROM MANHATTAN: Take the Holland Tunnel. When you exit the tunnel turn left onto Marin Blvd. Turn right onto 6th Street, then left onto Coles Street and left onto Fifth. Street. (It’s about 5 minutes out of the Tunnel.)

PATH FROM NYC: Take the Newark/Journal Square bound PATH train from 33rd, 23rd, 14th or 9th Streets (all at 6th Ave.) or from Christopher Street or WTC. (Note: on weekends the train stops in Hoboken before continuing to Jersey City.) Get off at

GROVE STREET station. Exit and walk West on Newark Ave. When you reach Jersey Ave. make a right and continue to 5th Street. The gallery is to the left at 272 Fifth Street.

PROTEUS GOWANUS is a gallery and reading room located on the Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn, NY. A collaborative project, the gallery develops exhibits of art, artifacts and books and hosts events that revolve around a yearlong theme linking the arts to other disciplines and to the community. In adjacent spaces, seven additional projects-in-residence have grown out of thematic exhibitions and partnerships. This year’s theme is PARADISE, an exploration of the light and dark sides of spiritual ascent and sensual escape, in which we invite artists and workers in other disciplines to respond to the siren song of that which is easy to imagine but
difficult to attain.
For more info: [w] proteusgowanus.com [e] info@proteusgowanus.com [t] 718-243-1572

DRIVING FROM MANHATTAN: (There is usually easy parking on weekends.) Continue straight off Brooklyn Bridge to Atlantic Avenue, take left on Atlantic. Go four blocks to Nevins St and take a right. Follow Nevins several blocks til you come to Sackett. Park on the next block (just before Union) and go down the alley off Nevins through the large black gates, second door on the left.

SUBWAY, R or M train to Union Street in Brooklyn: Walk two long blocks on Union (towards the Gowanus Canal) to Nevins Street. 543 Union Street is the large red brick building on right. Go right on Nevins and left down alley through large black gates. Gallery is the second door on the left.

F or G train to Carroll Street: Walk one block to Union. Turn right, walk two long blocks on Union towards the Gowanus Canal, cross the bridge, take left on Nevins, go down the alley to the second door on the left.

To see much more of the work in the exhibition, you can download a digital version of their beautifully designed catalog--the hard copy of which will eventually be available for sale on Lulu--by clicking here.

Image: Joanna Ebenstein, Natural History Museum Storage Area, 2010

The Morbid Anatomy Library is so very excited to announce the lineup for this year's Congress for Curious Peoples at The Coney Island Museum. For those of you who don't remember from last year, the Congress for Curious Peoples is a 2-day symposium about curiosity and curiosities broadly conceived; it is organized by The Morbid Anatomy Library and The Coney Island Museum and takes place over the weekend of April 16th and 17th at The Coney Island Museum, marking the final weekend of the 10-day Congress of Curious Peoples (more on that in a moment).

This year's Congress for Curious Peoples symposium was inspired by the themes of the The Great Coney Island Spectacularium, the installation I have been working on as Artist in Resident of The Coney Island Museum and within which the Congress will take place. Topics explored in the symposium will include Immersive Amusements, Human Anatomy on Display, and Science and Technology for Public Amusement and will feature many of my favorite scholars, artists, collectors and bon vivants, including (and this is just a brief sampling) Mark Dion, Norman Klein, Mark Dery, Mike Sappol, Lord Whimsy, Evan Michelson, Mike Zohn, and Laurel Braitman. There will also be a scheduled break to visit the Super Freak Weekend Freakshow that will be running continuously throughout the weekend downstairs in Coney Island USA.

Full schedule for the Congress for Curious Peoples follows. This event is sure to sell out, so I highly recommend getting your tickets as soon as possible!

The Congress for Curious Peoples
Saturday and Sunday, April 16th and 17th
The Coney Island Museum
1208 Surf Avenue, Brooklyn

Saturday April 16th
10:00 - 11:00 Keynote Speaker
Norman Klein, author of "The Vatican to Vegas: The History of Special Effects"

11:30 - 1:30 "The New Curiosity": Scholarship as Artistic Medium
Mark Dion, Artist
Joanna Ebenstein, The Morbid Anatomy Library
Wendy Walker, author of "The Secret Service"
Moderated and introduced by Aaron Beebe, The Coney Island Museum

1:30 - 3:30: Lunch and Sideshow Visit

3:30 - 5:30: Immersive Amusements/ Scripted Spaces

Elizabeth Bradley, author of "Knickerbocker: The Myth behind New York"
Mark Dery, author "The Pyrotechnic Insanitarium: American Culture on the Brink"
Amy Herzog, author of "Dreams of Difference, Songs of the Same: The Musical Moment in Film"
Moderated and Introduced by Alison Griffiths, author of "Shivers Down Your Spine: Cinemas, Museums, and the Immersive View"

Sunday April 17th
10:00 - 12:00: The Fairground and The Museum: Human Anatomy on Display
Lisa Farrington, author of "Creating Their Own image: the History of African-American Women Artists"
Anna Maerker, author of "Model Experts: Wax Anatomies and Enlightenment in Florence and Vienna, 1775-1815"
Mike Sappol, author of "A Traffic of Dead Bodies: Anatomy and Embodied Social Identity in Nineteenth-Century America"
Elizabeth Stephens, "Anatomy as Spectacle: Public Exhibitions of the Body from 1700 to the Present"
Moderated and introduced by John Troyer, author of "Technologies of the Human Corpse" (Forthcoming)

12:00 - 1:00: Lunch

1:00 - 3:00: The 19th Century Dime Museum in the Contemporary Imagination
Will Baker, author of "Multiple Meanings and Values in Johnny Fox's Freakatorium"
Aaron Beebe, The Coney Island Museum
D. B. Denholtz, editor of "Shocked and Amazed: On & Off the Midway"
Evan Michelson, Obscura Antiques and star of TV's "Oddities"
Mike Zohn, Obscura Antiques and star of TV's "Oddities"
Moderated and introduced by Andrea Dennett, author of "Weird and Wonderful: The Dime Museum in America"

3:30 - 5:30: Science and Technology for Public Amusement
Laurel Braitman, author of "Animal Madness" (forthcoming)
Fred Nadis, author of "Wonder Shows: Performing Science, Magic, and Religion in America"
Simon Werrett, author of "Fireworks: Pyrotechnic Arts and Sciences in European History"
Moderated by Lord Whimsy/Allen Crawford, author of "The Affected Provincial's Companion, Volume One"

Tickets for the weekend are $25 and can be purchased by clicking here. You can also purchase a 10-day Congressional Passes which gets one into all of the events comprising both the Congress of Curious Peoples and the 10-day Congress for Curious Peoples, including those that are already sold out; click here to purchase one of those, $75 in advance, $100 at the door.

To give you a sense of what this "Congressional Pass" would entitle you to, following is the full schedule for the 10 day Congress of Curious Peoples, of which the Congress for is but a the final part. Confused? I know. Sorry! There's simply no getting around it; that's just the kind of beast this series of events is.

Congress of Curious Peoples Schedule
Coney Island USA
1208 Surf Avenue, Brooklyn

Friday, April 8

• Opening Night Party TICKETS/DETAILS

Saturday, April 9

• Super Freak Weekend at Sideshows by the Seashore (Tickets at the door)
• Colonnade of Curiosities in the Freak Bar (Curiosity vendors)
• Party for the 2011 Season Premiere of Oddities on the Science Channel TICKETS/DETAILS (Sold Out!)

Sunday, April 10

• Super Freak Weekend at Sideshows by the Seashore (Tickets at the door)
• Colonnade of Curiosities in the Freak Bar (Curiosity vendors)

Monday April 11th

• 7:30: Evan Michelson, "A Gathering of Bones" TICKETS/DETAILS
• 8:30: The Flambeaux Sheaux Birthday Roast TICKETS/DETAILS

Tuesday April 12th

• 7:30: Ronni Thomas, “The Diableiries and 19th Century Pre-cinematic Horror” TICKETS/DETAILS
• 8:30: Johnny Fox of the Freakatorium TICKETS/DETAILS

Wednesday April 13th

• 7:30: Judson Rosebush, "Burlesque: Exotic Dancers of the 1950's and 60's" TICKETS/DETAILS
• 8:30: Bambi and Bambi: Classic Burley-q meets the New Burlesque TICKETS/DETAILS

Thursday April 14th

• 7:30: Amy Herzog, “Primal Scenes: Sigmund Freud, Coney Island, and the Staging of Domestic Trauma” TICKETS/DETAILS
• 8:30: Rudy MacAggi, finalist on America’s Got Talent 2010 TICKETS/DETAILS

Friday April 15th

• 7:30: Acep Hale, "Legerdemain and Larceny" TICKETS/DETAILS
• 8:30: Sideshow Legends Ward Hall and Bobby Reynolds TICKETS/DETAILS

Saturday April 16th

• Super Freak Weekend at Sideshows by the Seashore (Tickets at the door)
• Colonnade of Curiosities in the Freak Bar (Curiosity vendors)
• Congress For Curious People Day 1

Sunday April 17th

• Super Freak Weekend at Sideshows by the Seashore (Tickets at the door)
• Colonnade of Curiosities in the Freak Bar (Curiosity vendors)
• Congress For Curious People Day 2

As you can see, this is going to be a seriously epic series of events! Very, very much hope to see you at one, many, or all of them!

To find out more about The Spectacularium and The Congress(es), click here.

Special thanks to the Andy Warhol Foundation, whose generosity helped to fund all of these fantastic events.

Also, the lovely poster was designed by Lord Whimsy; click on image to see larger more readable version.

If you’ve been watching the news recently, you most certainly know that Japan has quite a problem on their hands with their nuclear power plant they have been trying to cool down. One can only imagine what it must be like to live it and hear it all day, everyday since the quake. In an effort to educate and quell the fear among the kids that have to live through this terrible event, they made this funny video to help children understand what’s going on.  What better way to explain science than by equating the problem with certain bodily functions? I wonder how accurate the translations is, but the concept is simple and light. If I were a kid, this would most likely make me feel a bit better; hang in there kids!

[via huffingtonpost]

I definitely have Chronic Computerosis and a bit of the Deskorheea.

Interesting use of the famous historical illustrations of Andreas Vesalius’ De Humani Corporis Fabrica.  However, I’m very disappointed in the quality of these illustrations as compared to the ones in Vesalius’ text.  These look like a quick and messy tracing job that do nothing to reflect the years and years of work and research by Vesalius and his artists.  Tsk tsk.  I guess that’s just the medical illustrator in me.

Advertising Agency: Frank, Bucharest, Romania
Creative Director: Teodor Cucu
Art Director: Irina Chira
Copywriter: Adrian Dragan, Maria Ionescu
Illustrator: Alex Talamba
Strategic planner: Ioana Tomescu
Published: February 2011

[spotted by Eric]

Bodi Bill – Brand New Carpet from Sinnbus on Vimeo. Check out the anatomy at 0:27 and the floating heart at 1:00!  The whole video looks like a crazy dream.

[spotted by Fabian]

The outdoor for your kids. The museum for their television programs.

Advertising Agency: LatinWorks, Austin, USA
Chief Creative Officer: Sergio Alcocer
Creative Director: Diego Castillo
Art Directors: Rob Casillas, Daslav Maslov
Copy: Diego Castillo
Account Director: Christy Kranik
Photographer: Sergio Celume
Retoucher: Inercia
Responsible for the Client: Joy Authur, Kay Morris
Production Manager: Steve Grill
Published: May 2010

[retrieved from Ads of the World]

Belarusian designers Maria and Igor Solovyov of Solovyov Design have created this brain shaped energy efficient light bulb, “Insight.” It is a fun and smart play on the imagery of having a “bright idea.” You can see more of their work including furniture, packaging, and other lighting projects on their site, solovyovdesign.by

[via TDW Geek]

Aspiring medical illustrator and art director, Marla Bonner is currently a student at Minnesota State University Mankato seeking a degree in Drawing and Biology. She’s off to a good start with these clever dissections of fashion models.

Marla says of her work,

I was challenged by my painting teacher to create pieces that I normally wouldn’t. I chose these magazines from Denmark that really intrigued me. Not being fond of fashion magazines I attempted to create images that required a double take.

View more of Marla’s work in her Behance portfolio.

Does anyone remember the artist that did similar dissections of fashion models on magazine covers? I can’t for the life of me find the name.

[spotted by Diane Olivier via Sandy Yagi]