outbreak

							CDC Exhibit Highlights How Disease Changed History

The Global Health Odyssey Museum at the CDC opened its newest exhibit,Outbreak:
Plagues that Changed History/The Work of Bryn Barnard Sept. 27. The exhibit centers
on Barnard’s book of the same name and its exploration of how diseases have changed
human history.
Each section of the exhibit starts off with a question about a particular disease such as,
“Did cholera pave the way for modern cities?” followed by a map of how the disease
spread along with images of the actual agent that causes the disease. Barnard’s
illustrations from the book frame information on how each disease changed history.
In one example, Barnard questions whether yellow fever helped end the slave trade. A
map shows that yellow fever, which is usually transmitted by mosquitoes, started in
Africa and spread to the New World aboard slave ships. Most of the slaves had survived
the disease as children, which gave them immunity as adults. However, many Europeans
were sickened and killed by the disease. When Napoleon sent his men to Haiti to quell a
revolt, many of them were sickened or killed by yellow fever, which led to Haiti being
the first nation founded by former slaves in 1804. Microscopic images of the yellow
fever virus are included in the display.
Other diseases focused on in the exhibit include smallpox, which killed up to 90% of
Native Americans and helped the Europeans conquer the New World, and tuberculosis,
the symptoms of which many Europeans thought were a sign of artistic fire.
Barnard’s book produced a compelling topic for museum curator, Louise E. Shaw.
“Barnard talks about the impact of various diseases on history, including plague,
smallpox, yellow fever, cholera, influenza, and HIV/AIDS,” Shaw said. “CDC works in
all of these areas, so the exhibit is a perfect fit! Our ultimate goal is to educate the public
about disease control and prevention, and a popular-based visual arts project such as this
one is an accessible and compelling tool.”
The images taken from the book could best be described as haunting. The Denver Post
has called Barnard’s work “the stuff of nightmares.”
Julie Just, of the New York Times, describes one illustration that “depicts a medieval
European doctor tending a plague victim in wide-brimmed hat, gloves and long-beaked
mask with goggles. The cure looks at least as deadly as the disease.”
Barnard says his illustrations “span the range from magic realist landscapes, to scientific
and historical tableaux, to children's book illustration.” Each of his works is thoroughly
researched to ensure it accurately depicts historical events. Barnard’s images, which he
began creating in 1984, mostly consist of oil on panel, but he also uses acrylic and digital
imagery.
Tour guide Trudi Ellerman sees the exhibit as an opportunity to apply a scientific
perspective to social history.
“Smallpox enabled the conquistadors to take over the new world more easily. The Black
Death contributed to the fact that Europe has a middle class now and it’s not just the serfs
and the landowners. It’s full of just really interesting perspectives like this,” Ellerman
said. “We pride ourselves on showing you some funky stuff you might not see anywhere
else,” she added.
The exhibit runs until January 30, 2009. The museum is open Monday - Wednesday and
Friday from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. and Thursday from 9 a.m. - 7 p.m. Admission is free, but a
driver’s license or passport is required for entry.
For more information, go to www.cdc.gov/gcc/exhibit.