Week 7: Neuroscience + Art

-
Every time we enjoy a work of art, a hidden multitude of chemical reactions and electric potentials within neurons govern our perception and understanding of that experience. Neuroscience and art have always been intricately intertwined, with the "father of neuroscience" Ramon y Cajal using his artistic skills to draw beautiful representations of the neurons he observed (Vesna).
Ramon y Cajal Sketch
https://d2r55xnwy6nx47.cloudfront.net/
uploads/2017/09/Drawing_03-1151x1720.jpg
It is strange to see how the populace...disdains the world around it as commonplace without suspecting that at bottom it is all secret, mystery, and marvel. - Ramon y Cajal (Kalat)
In modern times, the public and artist's interest in neuroscience has increased dramatically, with research being done on the ways in which our brains respond to different visual cues in art (Frazzetto). In my opinion, Salvador Dali is one of the most influential artists who used an understanding of the human brain to create art that captivates the viewer. His careful use of illusion and perspective played with the viewer's perception, which is intricately tied with neurophysiology.
Old Couple or Musicians
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3PAMOcssHkA/VmZGC-Vb5ZI/
AAAAAAAAAAw/loGAnj5fwqg/s1600/OLDCOUPLEDALI.jpg

The Surrealist movement, which he propelled into popularity, searched for ways to unlock the human mind by relating to the unconscious (Salvador Dali and Surrealism). Modern advances in neuroscience may allow for artistic movements that interact more directly with consciousness than the Surrealist movement could. Current research indicates that certain visual features, such as bright regions and flashing lights, instantly draw the viewer's attention (Zaidel). Additionally, anthropological research suggests that "symbolic representation", the creation of art, has linked features: for instance, we still find the early caveman drawings artistically beautiful despite the numerous ways in which culture and society have changed. One day, research like this may allow for art that is so captivating and enthralling it may enthrall the human brain in a nearly addictive manner.
Ancient Cave Art
https://www.thoughtco.com/thmb/tSjQcEM8P3oePiuF-WEvmZCJu9M=/768x0/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/full-frame-shot-of-handprints-on-rock-at-cueva-de-las-manos-691100153-5b6620fdc9e77c00501e8974.jpg

 Sources
Frazzetto, Giovanni, and Suzanne Anker. “Neuroculture.” Nature Reviews Neuroscience, vol. 10, no. 11, 2009, pp. 815–821., doi:10.1038/nrn2736.

Kalat, James W. Biological Psychology. CENGAGE, 2019.

“Salvador Dalí and Surrealism.” Salvador Dali Modern Art and Surrealism | The Dalí Universe, www.thedaliuniverse.com/en/salvador-dali.

Vesna, Victoria. “Conscious / Memory (Part 1).” Lecture. 16 Nov 2012. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=DLVQIwOn7o8>

Zaidel, Dahlia W. “Art and Brain: Insights from Neuropsychology, Biology and Evolution.” Journal of Anatomy, vol. 216, no. 2, 2010, pp. 177–183., doi:10.1111/j.1469-7580.2009.01099.x.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Week 3: Robotics and Art

-
Image
In examining the profound influence that robotics and automation has had on art, it is useful to examine a statement made by Walter Benjamin after the industrial revolution: "[the] technique of reproduction detaches the reproduced object from the domain of tradition" (1). Certainly, the initial responses of artists to industrialization was negative, which I believe is valid since a reproduction, though technically identical to the original, lacks the form and texture of the original. Therefore, reproductions lose out on an emotional response from the viewer to the effort placed into creating the original. However, not all responses to industrialization and modernization have been negative. My photographic self-portrait can be turned upside down, my ear can be chopped off, the background can be changed from black to gold Hugo Cabret Tinkering on a Mouse Automaton https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRL921NqU WGL41_VpTXq4E-s_AWAcQBiBFwwkQc3n2EVEY7iDMc D...
Read more

Week 6: BioTech + Art

-
Image
As biotechnology moves at a breakneck pace, a new artistic medium is becoming available: the manipulation of life itself. In 1928, scientist and artist Alexander Fleming, who had just discovered and received a Nobel prize for penicillin, created the world's first "germ art" (Smithsonian). Germ Art by Alexander Fleming https://thumbs-prod.si-cdn.com/ciAlw3et1br9pgJ5Vmgc3DdMbPw= /fit-in/1072x0/https://public-media.si-cdn.com/filer/microbial-art-2.jpg In the decades that followed, genetic technology advanced significantly, permitting bio artist Joe Davis to genetically modify E. Coli to carry an encoded picture of the symbol of Venus (Vesna). Life itself was being turned into an expressive medium with its own merits: being naturally visceral and emotive, due to its living state, and providing a platform for commentary on gene editing and other controversial scientific issues. Current ethicists and artists need to grapple with the unlimited potential for creativity, a...
Read more

Week 2: Mathematics and Art

-
Image
Poor Perspective in Art https://ayoqq.org/images/perspective-drawing-bad-14.jpg Art can be understood as the subjective expression of the natural world, and the world that art seeks to imitate and iterate upon as completely defined by mathematics. In this week's lectures, I gained a unique insight into the recency with which mathematics has been directly applied in art. One need only a glance at the image on the right to realize that it poorly reflects reality, yet a true understanding of perspective in art did not occur until as late as the 13th century BCE with Giotto (Vesna). One of the turning points in creating art, especially art that involved architectural objects and scenes as viewed from a close observer's perspective, was the vanishing point (Frantz, 37). The vanishing point is used to convert the visual field, which has disappearing lines due to the perception of vision through the eyes, into an image with lines converging towards certain focal points. Stud...
Read more