In anatomy, we constantly face donors who have given their bodies to benefit our learning. Yet we know nothing about them except their generous nature.

Our thoracic model explores the loss of identity occurring when the specimens are dissected. The cold, metallic wire of the bones against the warm red of the heart highlights the complexity of the human body. No longer are donors people, with complex, nuanced emotions, but merely a thoracic cavity or a heart to be examined.

The enveloping emotional characteristics symbolise how the fabric of a person is not just their body, but their character too, which is lost on a cadaver. Our sculpture invites the viewer to consider how donors don’t just give up their physical bodies, but also their identity that was intertwined with it when they were alive.