A breast to sit in: Mammae reveals the anatomy beneath the skin
What does a piece of furniture look like when it is inspired by the female breast and its interior of milk ducts, mammary glands and fatty tissue?
A breast-inspired piece of furniture will be a central element of the next phase of the Steno Museum’s exhibition The Overlooked Body. Scenographer Caroline Bang Hedegaard is behind the giant organ, which will also function as a seating piece. The piece visualises the internal structures of the female breast – milk ducts, lobules and fatty tissue – using textile techniques.
“With the breast-inspired seating piece Mammae, I want to turn anatomical knowledge into a bodily and tactile experience that stimulates visitors’ sense of wonder and curiosity – while also giving them a place to sit and rest,” she explains.
Caroline got the idea for the seat based on the internal anatomy of the breast from the cover image of Olga Ravn’s poetry collection Jeg æder mig selv som lyng (I Eat Myself Like Heather).
“The poetry collection features an anatomical poster from 1840 showing the mammary glands of the female breast,” Caroline explains. “By peeling away the skin of the breast, you see what is shared by everyone with female biology, regardless of the breast’s size, colour or shape.”
For Caroline, the project is about both fascination and necessity:
“I find the body’s internal forms fascinating and strange, and they can feel like another world that we carry just beneath the skin. Knowledge of the body is crucial if we are to treat disease as effectively as possible. That is why it is so important that The Overlooked Body at the Steno Museum brings attention to research into the female body – so that we, as women, can receive medical treatment equal to that of men.”
To sew the 16 mammary gland covers for the piece, 6.5 kilometres of thread, 16 metres of cotton fabric and 20 metres of upholstery wool were used. The wool was dyed by the team themselves to achieve exactly the right soft pink glandular tones. Each of the 16 covers consists of five separate parts, meaning that a total of 80 pieces with mammary structures were sewn.
Caroline is based in Aarhus and has collaborated on the work with Mie Gillings (who also appears in the video) and Talita Oliveira.Et "brystmøbel" skal være en central del af Steno Museets udstillingen “Den oversete krop” s næste fase. Scenograf Caroline Bang Hedegaard står bag kæmpeorganet, som skal også skal være et siddemøbel. Møblet visualiserer kvindebrystets indre strukturer – mælkegange, lobuli og fedtvæv – ved hjælp af tekstile teknikker.
A tradition of giant organs as an exhibition device
This is not the first time that the Science Museums have displayed giant organs. At present, the world’s largest knitted placenta stands at the entrance to the upcoming exhibition The Overlooked Body. Previously, a womb that visitors could climb into was a very popular feature of the exhibition Ovulations, alongside enormous models of sperm and egg cells.
When Steno Museum opened The Overlooked Body in January 2025, it marked the first step in a larger exhibition project addressing the historical and ongoing underrepresentation of the biological female body in medical research.
The next phase of the exhibition opens on 18 June 2026 and is being developed in co‑creation with researchers, school pupils and artists.
The exhibition is supported by the Novo Nordisk Foundation.