From March 21 to August 16, 2026, Singapore’s ArtScience Museum invites visitors to peel back the layers of the human form in its latest blockbuster exhibition, Flesh and Bones: The Art of Anatomy. Featuring more than 160 extraordinary works, the showcase blends historical artifacts from the Getty Research Institute with contemporary installations and real biological specimens. This ambitious survey explores how the body has been mapped, idealized, and understood across different cultures and centuries, challenging our perceptions of what it means to be human.
The exhibition is structured into nine thematic galleries, beginning with the monumental “The Network Within” by Chiharu Shiota. This intricate installation sets the tone for a journey that transitions from the external “Surface and Structure” to the internal mechanics of “Circulation and Flow.” By merging the clinical with the creative, the museum offers a rare space where science and art coexist, providing a profound reflection on our own mortality and physical complexity.
Beyond the Textbook: Five Immersive Highlights
The exhibition’s strength lies in its ability to humanize biological data. Whether through the lens of a personal medical journey or immersive technology, these five highlights redefine the anatomical experience:
- Rules for Photographing a Scoliotic Patient: Artist Woong Soak Teng offers a poignant look at the “Surface and Structure” of the body. By incorporating her own X-rays and personal history with scoliosis, she shifts the narrative from a detached Western medical gaze to a more intimate, Asian-centric perspective on spinal health.
- Evolver: In the “Circulation and Flow I” segment, Marshmallow Laser Feast provides a sensory-rich digital experience. Equipped with headphones, visitors dive into a microscopic world, feeling the rhythmic expansion of lungs and the rush of oxygen as if they were traveling through their own veins.
- Human Specimens: Perhaps the most arresting section, the “Saints and the Living Dead” gallery displays real human remains on loan from the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine and Germany’s Institute for Plastination. Seeing actual muscle fibers and organs up close serves as a sobering reminder of the body’s intricate fragility.
- Just One of Those Things: Photographed by Mari Katayama, this series challenges the “Anatomical Ideal.” Through self-portraiture, Katayama reclaims her body from traditional beauty standards, transforming it into a site of resilience, identity, and personal agency.
- Traditional Chinese Medicine Gallery: Shifting the focus from physical structure to energy flow, this gallery explores the Huangdi Neijing (the classic text of Chinese medicine). It highlights how TCM practitioners have mapped the body’s interconnected systems through balance and “qi” for centuries.
Exploring the Human Machine
Beyond the displays, Flesh and Bones encourages a renewed sense of self-care and curiosity. By contrasting centuries-old engravings with modern 3D visualizations, the exhibition highlights how technology has revolutionized our ability to peak inside ourselves. It isn’t just a lesson in biology; it is a meditation on the vessel we inhabit every day.
Plan Your Visit
- Location: ArtScience Museum, 6 Bayfront Ave, Singapore.
- Dates: March 21 – August 16, 2026.
- Hours: Sunday to Thursday (10am–7pm); Friday to Saturday (10am–9pm).
- Admission: Starting from $19.50 for Singaporean adults; $22 for tourists. Tickets are available at the Marina Bay Sands official website.