Topic: Gunther Von Hagens crucifixion

[Tepid water]

Watched this last night and it was very interesting.

His recreation of the crucifixion seems likely to be hugely controversial, but it was clear that didn't intend it that way and only intended it to be inspirational.


What are people's feelings on this?

[Golden_Child]

Thought it was boss how he casts the whole vascular system.

He's a strange guy indeed. Clearly brilliant and intelligent yet he almost has a child-like quality to him. It was as if he didn't really grasp why people would be unhappy with him. Either way, I've seen 'art' that I consider to be much worse than his receive plaudits.

Shame his health is failing him.

[Tepid water]

Thought it was boss how he casts the whole vascular system.

He's a strange guy indeed. Clearly brilliant and intelligent yet he almost has a child-like quality to him. It was as if he didn't really grasp why people would be unhappy with him. Either way, I've seen 'art' that I consider to be much worse than his receive plaudits.

Shame his health is failing him.

He couldn't look more sinister of he tried could he?

[Golden_Child]

He couldn't look more sinister of he tried could he?

The very definition of a mad German scientist. I wonder what will happen to his own body when he dies? Surely nailed on to be a part of one of his exhibitions.

[jaybeezay]

He has already said his own body will be displayed. I find him to be a very odd person. At times last night I wondered if he is a psychopath. It wasn't just that he couldn't understand peoples objections to what he was doing with the crucifiction(not that I do personally) he just seemed to have no empathy whatsoever with anybody on the show. I may be wrong but just from what I have read about psychopaths it may be the case.

I had also never seen or heard of 'piss christ', whatever opinions may be on how the art was created I thought the actual picture was amazing.

[Tepid water]

He has already said his own body will be displayed. I find him to be a very odd person. At times last night I wondered if he is a psychopath. It wasn't just that he couldn't understand peoples objections to what he was doing with the crucifiction(not that I do personally) he just seemed to have no empathy whatsoever with anybody on the show. I may be wrong but just from what I have read about psychopaths it may be the case.

I had also never seen or heard of 'piss christ', whatever opinions may be on how the art was created I thought the actual picture was amazing.

Yes, I feel if he'd called it Christ underwater it wouldn't have mattered.


I don't think he is psychopathic in any way.

He just works with dead bodies and has thought his career.  They are merely vessels to him.

He continually talked about the emotional impact of the crucifixion and I can't see how a psychopath could possibly have understood that.

[jaybeezay]

They can understand in the same way you or me can understand how we are 'supposed' to feel when presented with a situation. Like I said, I may be completely wrong. He also mentioned a head injury when young which may explain a lot. In any case he is clearly a brilliant man. I was stunned at the plastic rendering of the vascular system. Proper, interesting tv, everything about it was class. Even showing the making of the cross, from the first chop of the axe to the end product. I even delayed homeland a night just to watch this all the way through

[J-Mc-]

The very definition of a mad German scientist. I wonder what will happen to his own body when he dies? Surely nailed on to be a part of one of his exhibitions.

He's already said he wants it to be.

Watched it with the missus earlier today and, at first, I didn't agree with what he does, mainly for the fact that I think it's disrespectful to use a dead human body as a piece of art, it crosses the line for me, even if the bodies have been donated.

Thought it was very anti-climatic aswell.

[scoresagain]

I'm about halfway through watching it now, the techniques he uses to display the bodies are amazing. It does seem that its become more about the art than the anatomy and I think that's a bit sad really.

On a side note, I count myself as an atheist, but the calling of the photo 'Piss Christ' by Serrano is unbelievably disrespectful, no wonder people try and destroy it everywhere they see it.

[Stevie-A]

Was going to give this a wide berth to be fair. However, any reference to Serrano's art is of great interest. I recall the furore surrounding Piss Christ when it was first shown. Incredible stuff, and now intrigued as to how this will be embedded into the programme. Cheers for the heads up.

[J-Mc-]

Was going to give this a wide berth to be fair. However, any reference to Serrano's art is of great interest. I recall the furore surrounding Piss Christ when it was first shown. Incredible stuff, and now intrigued as to how this will be embedded into the programme. Cheers for the heads up.

It's got about a 20 second slot mate, nothing major.

[Tepid water]

He's already said he wants it to be.

Watched it with the missus earlier today and, at first, I didn't agree with what he does, mainly for the fact that I think it's disrespectful to use a dead human body as a piece of art, it crosses the line for me, even if the bodies have been donated.

Thought it was very anti-climatic aswell.

I'm not sure it is disrespectful though....

Certainly it's no different to the church he visited in the program where bones were used as art (there are similar things elsewhere I believe).  Im not sure that it wouldn't be double stadnards for the church to accept them but not his.....

These documentaries always end in anticlimax, they always rush them out before they've actually had a chance to follow them though properly, its a modern thing that really annoys me..

[J-Mc-]

I'm not sure it is disrespectful though....

Certainly it's no different to the church he visited in the program where bones were used as art (there are similar things elsewhere I believe).  Im not sure that it wouldn't be double stadnards for the church to accept them but not his.....

These documentaries always end in anticlimax, they always rush them out before they've actually had a chance to follow them though properly, its a modern thing that really annoys me..

I think that it's disrespectful of the church as well, not just from him.

I'm all for these types of things when they're to educate and push forward in scientific understanding of the human body, but not when it's purely for the person/places own artistic gains.

They could have ended this quicker due to him becoming to ill to continue? I do think it's a shame that you didn't get to see him at the final lifting.

[Stevie-A]

It's got about a 20 second slot mate, nothing major.

Cheers mate. I'll not bother with the sarnies then