Body art

Upon walking into the Fowler Museum of Cultural History’s
innovative exhibit titled “UCLA Collects! Bodies of
Knowledge,” one will be greeted by a full-size paper mache
skeleton from Mexico standing proudly next to an intricate Japanese
chart pinpointing correct placement for acupuncture. Both are from
historically and logistically opposing realms, yet they have been
brought together at the Fowler Museum in direct juxtaposition for a
celebration of the many culturally diverse depictions of the human
body here at UCLA.

The exhibit is comprised of works from five different
collections: The Fowler Museum, The Grunwald Center for the Graphic
Arts at the Hammer Museum, Special Collections in the Charles E.
Young Research Library, History and Special Collections in the
Louise M. Darling Biomedical Library and the Rock Art Archive of
the Cotsen Institute of Archaeology, all of which have brought
their disparate renderings of the human body, and its specific
functions and parts, for display.

“We wanted the different collections to talk to each
other,” said Fowler Director Marla Berns, who originated the
idea. “There were many thematic possibilities, but the human
body is our most fundamental tool. Everything begins and ends with
our own bodies. The human pursuit of knowledge really begins within
ourselves.”

But the exhibit does not only showcase how renderings of the
body differ across cultures and through time. It is also designed
to introduce the community to the numerous hidden wonders of the
UCLA campus.

“This is a great way for the UCLA community to see the
riches and treasures that it has,” said Carol Peter,
associate curator for the Grunwald Center. “The contrasts we
get by placing these different objects next to each other creates a
dialogue of how an artist can approach a biomedical journal, or how
a scientist can approach an art museum.”

These contrasting relationships make the exhibit unlike what a
contemporary museum, where each section has its own room, might
present. For Katherine Donahue, head of the Special Collections
from the Biomedical Library, this type of display reverts back to a
more antiquated way of presenting remarkable objects.

“In the 16th and 17th centuries, all kinds of material
flowed into Europe, and collectors put all sorts of things together
without trying to make much sense of it,” Donahue said.
“I think that this exhibit harkens back to a much earlier
tradition.”

Ultimately, this is what Berns was trying to achieve with her
idea. By displaying, for example, a first edition of “Mrs.
Dalloway” with Virginia Woolf’s notes in the margins
alongside a brilliantly colored anatomical diagram from the 18th
century, Berns is hoping to echo the older museum tradition along
with the thought-provoking contrasts of the pieces.

“This was an opportunity for us to create a replica of a
Cabinet of Wonders,” Berns said. “With this type of
display you can get an idea of the vastness of human
creativity.”

Designed to appeal to a college-aged community, this exhibit
also differs from usual museum viewing in that it is more directed
to an aesthetic, visual sense rather than one’s strictly
academic side.

“It was designed to delight and cause people to stop and
say, “˜Why, isn’t that marvelous,'” Donahue
said. “That was one of the reasons why we mainly picked
things that are wonderful to look at. It’s not exactly the
most scholarly way to do it, but that would require a lot more
textual information, and you are not supposed to be too in depth
and scholarly about this material. It is more of a visual treat by
contrast and comparison.”

As novel as this kind of exhibit is to the contemporary museum
visitor, it is only the beginning. According to Berns,
“Bodies of Knowledge” could open the doors to other
all-encompassing displays.

“This exhibit is only an appetizer, not an entree,”
Berns said. “All the UC schools combined have a collection of
well over 50 million objects, so there could definitely be a much
bigger project in the future.”