Source: Mori Art Museum
The history of medicine is the sum of all such scientific explorations into the nature of the human body. Likewise, attempts to create depictions of beauty have also been repeated in history. The human body, in fact, has always been held up as a place to embody the ideal form of beauty, and people have never tired of its depiction.

In this way, the body can be seen as the meeting point, or the point of departure for journeys into the two very different worlds of medicine and art. The scientist/artist who obviously stood most prominently at this intersection was Leonardo da Vinci. He left us not only stunningly accurate anatomical drawings, but also the Mona Lisa. Developments in science and technology have been essential to the advancement of medicine in the past, and these days too, medicine is advancing with developments in molecular biology. We are now able to explain the mechanism of DNA and shed new light on the question of what a living organism is.

This exhibition brings together roughly 150 important medical artifacts from the Wellcome Collection (http://www.wellcomecollection. org) in London, historical art works as well as about 30 works of contemporary art. It is a unique attempt to reconsider the fundamental question of the meaning of life and death from the parallel, yet rarely compared perspectives of medicine and art, or science and beauty. Also, three anatomical drawings by Leonardo da Vinci from The Royal Collection will be on display for the first time in Japan.

Exhibition sections and exhibited artists

Part 1 - Discovering the Inner World of the Body
How did people around the world first acquire understanding of the mechanisms of the human body and the vast world it contains? The first section of the exhibition answers that question by tracing various scientific developments through a vast array of artifacts. Exhibited works include anatomical drawings by Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo, anatomical diagrams and models from around the world. There are also works of contemporary art by Andy Warhol, Magnas Wallin, and Bai Yilao,as well as traditional Japanese works of art by the likes of Maruyama Ōkyo and Kawanabe Kyosai.

Part 2 - Fighting Against Death and Disease
This section looks at how people perceive death and disease and how they have tried to fight against it. In addition to presenting the history of medicine, pharmaceuticals, life sciences and scientific technology, this section poses philosophical questions about the nature of life and death. Exhibited works include Japanese anatomical texts as well as medical journals and historical medical instruments from around the world. There are also paintings on the theme of medicine and works of contemporary art made by Damien Hirst, Marc Quinn and Yanagi Miwa.

Part 3 - Toward Eternal Life and Love
In light of the latest developments in biotechnology, cybernetics and neuroscience, and with reference to medical materials and works of art, the third part of the exhibition poses the following questions: Considering reproduction is simply the endless repetition of the life-death cycle, what really motivates humans to reproduce? Is it possible to pinpoint the real objective of human life and its likely future? What is life? Exhibited works include drawings by René Descartes, illustrations by Francis Crick of the double-helix structure of DNA, and contemporary artworks by Francis Bacon, Jan Fabre, Matsui Fuyuko and others.