Unit 7: Neurosci + Art

Neuroscience and art go hand in hand. Humans unavoidably process feelings of joy, sadness, or different motions when looking at various works at art. For example, a colorful and uplifting painting can cause a rush of happiness. The picture shown below of the dog triggers sensors in our brain to allow us to feel a sense of positivity rather than sadness. This is due to what the artwork contains such as a dog and flowers which most people associate with happy thoughts.

Something I found very interesting during this unit was the lecture by Mark Cohen. He explained how humans could adapt in the short span of an hour when inverted goggles were placed on someone, which showed me the power that the brain holds. The mind is able to adapt to a variety of different situations. I find it incredible how a person can be having a terrible day and the mood can be suddenly turned by simply watching a favorite TV show or listening to an uplifting song. Although music is just a bunch of different sounds composed to sound rhythmic to us, our brain can process it into many different emotions.

Through this unit, I found how thought provoking dreaming really is. We don't know much about the subject, but we are able to create a very unrealistic and somewhat mystical simulation in our mind while we are asleep. Dreaming, in my opinion, is a form of art because there are dreams that combine so many different elements into one that it becomes unique to almost all other dreams. Many people write in dream journals and artists even draw what they dream. I came across an artist named Philip Carey who does just that. His website is http://www.strangeartofphilipcarey.com/dreamdrawings/.
Unfortunately we forget most of what we dream but it is still amazing that we dream to begin with.
Art by Philip Carey


“Art and Emotion.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 10 Apr. 2018, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_and_emotion.

“Dream Drawings.” The Strange Art of Philip Carey, www.strangeartofphilipcarey.com/dreamdrawings/.

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

Vesna, Victoria. Lecture. “Conscious / Memory (Part 2).” 16 Nov 2012. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Xlg5wXHWZNI>

Vesna, Victoria. Lecture. “Conscious / Memory (Part 3).” 16 Nov 2012. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=E5EX75xoBJ0>

Cohan, Mark. Lecture. 16 Nov 2012. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=eDq8uTROeXU>