Science Museum Photo Challenge #3

This is a really awesome little project tucked away in a corner of the Science Museum. It's just one case, one object, but it brings that object out of storage and into the public eye where it has never been seen before! Awesome to start with, but then 5 different museums each take the object and write their own label for it, which I think is a fascinating insight into the ways different institutions' interpretation policies can really effect the museum, right down to the simplest things. It also highlights the huge range of information that can be connected to one small object, and the importance of making the right choices from it for your museum.

Knowing that information is the domain of the curator. Knowing which information to choose and how to present it is what interpretation is all about. (Can I haz job in it now plzkthx?)

Personally I think it should be in a slightly more prominent place in the museum, and not tucked away (if you visit, see if you can find it!) but I don't suppose most Science Museum visitors find it as interesting as me.

Here's a closer look if you want to actually read some of the labels - they should be easily readable if you click on this photo to enlarge it:

And here is the object itself:

I almost forgot my challenge today - oopsie! Staying up late after working just to post this. I won't forget tomorrow - I have a good one planned!

Equine Anatomical

Speaking of loving anatomy, I've recently started to collect (via zootool) a little collection of equine anatomy images. Two loves in one.

For instance, this picture by Skinny Ships is just gorgeous:

The colours! I love it.

And then, yesterday I came across this:

Why did no one tell me Breyer made an anatomical model now?

I had quite a few Breyers when I was little (still do, in a box in he attic). I may have to rekindle this purchasing relationship...

PS Yup. Changed the background again. What can I say? Shabby have a new website up and I couldn't resist - not to mention I'm a bit tired of being reminded it's still winter!

I shall have to get round to adding a tumblr link too...

Every 43 Seconds

I have a thing about anatomy and skeletons and the like. I wouldn't term myself a scientist, if only because of the art/humanities direction my education took after age 16, but it's still a personal interest. Above all, I love images of anatomy. I think they are beautiful and fascinating and...I don't know. I like looking at them. Is that weird?

My cultural heritage studies lecturer can't stand what she terms 'the inside outside'. I felt more than apologetic explaining to her that the focus of my MA dissertation this year will be on the display of human remains in heritage contexts.* Personally I love the 'inside outside'. I think my interest in anatomy comes from loving to look a the way things are made, how they're constructed down to the little details, and what makes them work. I had this book when I was younger, showing hugely detailed cutaway diagrams of animal anatomy I could look at for hours...**

Anyway, I'm surprised it's taken me this long to find these, but they turned up on Fubiz today and I think they're gorgeous. In my slightly weird, apparently slightly macabre sense of aesthetics.

Every 43 seconds is a campaign highlighting death from gun violence. One example of the aesthetics of human anatomy being used to convey a powerful message.

I learnt via Street Anatomy (well, via Google really, but Google led to the discovery of the awesomeness that is Street Anatomy - it's going in the sidebar) that, although Fubiz only credits Jung von Matt for the creation of the project, the photography is the work of Francois Robert, who is definitely worth a look. They come from his 'Stop the Violence' gallery, which takes the message of 'every 43 seconds' even wider.

The internets: a never-ending maze of links to awesome.

* Can we just take a moment to pause and reflect on that terrifying prospect. DISSERTATION. I have to write one. Another one. I still have flashbacks.

** I did in once work as a gallery assistant for a display of some of the artist's work, but for the life of me his name has slipped my mind right now.