Free exhibition by French artist Ikse Maître and the collective des Vues de l'esprit that uses X-rays, MRI and nuclear imaging to reveal the human body.
Breathing Bodies is on at Aberdeen Art Gallery and across the city from 1 August to 22 November 2026. It's a free exhibition that uses medical imaging to look inside the human body, and it's spread across three installations rather than being kept in one room.
The part you'll find at the gallery is called Tout Passe. It's a three-dimensional reflection of our features, and it doesn't stop at the surface: you'll see beating hearts and circulating blood, and you'll get a sense of how the lungs work and how air passes through the body. The wider project, Première Intimité de l'être, is spread across the University of Aberdeen, so there's more to find beyond the gallery walls.
Both were created by French artist Ikse Maître and the collective des Vues de l'esprit. They work with MRI and other diagnostic technologies to make immersive installations, and they describe their work as an invitation to reflect on health, movement, breathing and what it means to be human. The whole thing forms part of the V|LFSpiro3D European research project, and it sits alongside the Chest MRI Advanced School hosted by the University.
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That university connection runs deep: Aberdeen has a long history of MRI innovation, and its scientists designed and built the first whole-body clinical MRI scanner back in the 1980s. So the science behind the art is something the city has a genuine claim to. Entry is free, and you can find Tout Passe at Aberdeen Art Gallery on Schoolhill (AB10 1FQ), with the rest of the project spread across the University of Aberdeen until 22 November.
