A weekend symposium devoted to to discussions of mortality and its cultural implications with special programming by Morbid Anatomy and The Order of the Good Death
Dates: October 18 - 20
Full info and registration here
SCHEDULE
Friday, October 18 8PM
Death Salon Cabaret
Bootleg Theater 2220 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles
Death Salon Cabaret with talks, music, and short films hosted by Lord Whimsy with speakers including Paul Koudounaris, Author of The Empire of Death; Bess Lovejoy, author of Rest in Pieces: The Curious Fates of Famous Corpses; Lindsey Fitzharris, Wellcome Trust Postdoctoral Research Fellow; and Sarah Troop, host of The Cabinet of Curiosities Podcast. There will also be musical performances by Jill Tracy and Adam Arcuragi. More details can be found here.
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Saturday, October 19, 2013
Morbid Anatomy Day
11 AM-6 PM
A one day, open-to-the-public Morbid Anatomy pop-up event which will explore the interstices of art and medicine, death and culture with screenings, a mini-symposium, a lecture on fin de siècle Parisian death themed cabarets with recreations of their classic drinks, and a panel on saints and mortification of the flesh.
11-1: Morbid Anatomy Anthology book panel of mini lectures, Midnight Archive screenings and panel discussion moderated by Lord Whimsy featuring:
- Colin Dickey, Author of Cranioklepty; Co-editor of The Morbid Anatomy Anthology
- Caitlin Doughty, Ask A Mortician/The Order of the Good Death
- Joanna Ebenstein, Founder of Morbid Anatomy
- Richard Faulk, Author of Gross America
- Mel Gordon, Author of The Grand Guignol and Voluptuous Panic: The Erotic World of Weimar Berlin
- Evan Michelson of TV’s “Oddities”
- Paul Koudounaris, author of Empire of Death
- Ronni Thomas, The Midnight Archive
1-2: Lunch
2-5:Â Obliterated Bodies, Dissected Souls: Panel Moderated by Colin Dickey
Mortification of the Feminine Flesh: Elizabeth Harper
From the fatal anorexia of St. Catherine of Sienna to St. Rose of Lima’s hidden crown of nails, self-inflicted pain has become part of a well-worn path to holiness for many Catholic women. However, these shocking acts become comprehensible and even logical when seen as a response to the transformation of the Church from the egalitarian early Christian church to the strict patriarchy of the Catholic Church as we know it. This change, coupled with Catholicism’s unique views on death and martyrdom have lead many holy women to believe that to perfect a woman’s soul, her body must be destroyed.
The Annihilated Saint: The Signifying Body of Bartholomew: Colin Dickey
Colin Dickey discusses images of torture in the cult of Christian saints, particularly Saint Bartholomew, who was flayed alive and who is regularly depicted holding his own skin. Inverting the traditional relationship of torturer and powerless victim, Christian imagery turned the act of torture into empowerment, where specific methods of torture became iconically associated with specific saints. As the cult of the saints waned, these images of torture began to filter into European consciousness in bizarre and fascinating ways, as Bartholomew’s singular torture found its way into the lexicon of Renaissance anatomy textbooks, creating a new relationship between the sublime body and the dissected corpse.
Bringing Out the Dead: The “Anatomy Art” of Gunther von Hagens: Allison de Fren
Filmmaker/media scholar Allison de Fren discusses the corporeal displays of controversial German anatomist Gunther von Hagens. Using examples from both his traveling exhibition of human cadavers, Bodyworlds, and his UK television series Anatomy for Beginners, she will show how von Hagens recycles the visual motifs of Renaissance anatomy theatre and art to resuscitate the practice of public dissection for contemporary audiences
 5-6: ”Cabarets of Death” : Lecture followed by fin de siècle Parisian death-themed cabarets cocktails from original recipes with Mel Gordon Highly illustrated lecture with reprints of the Cabaret du Néant’s menu and a recreation of their classic drinks from original recipes.