Neuroscientists And Artists Team Up For Art Neuro

By Ben Venables Last edited 112 months ago
Neuroscientists And Artists Team Up For Art Neuro

A knitted neuron by Rachel Pilston

Someone is going to have to set-up a recovery group for the East End's junkie zebrafish. Showing a preference for nicotine and alcohol, the stripy swimmers yield to temptation just like Londoners did during the 18th century gin craze. But there's no need to dive into the tanks for an intervention just yet — the fish are part of an experiment designed by Dr Matthew Parker to find triggers for addictive behaviour. And Parker's work has inspired artist Kate Hughes to create a new take on Gin Lane, Hogarth's classic 1751 print.

This is just one of 16 original artworks and collaborations by neuroscientists and artists for Art Neuro, a short-running exhibition near Brick Lane. Founder Supatra Marsh promises the exhibition "will immerse you in the world of neuroscience seen through the eyes of an artist".

There's also a cartoon bee to meet. On a giant comic strip, illustrator Freya Harrison has produced a wry take on David Baracchi's lab work studying bee behaviour. She's created Beetrix, who is "strong willed and excitable, but stubborn". Her cartoons convey lovely individual expressions making Beetrix all the more interesting because she's suffering the indignity of being clamped and tagged for the tests — just one bee in her own colony. Beetrix pines for freedom but is "flawed by a lack of knowledge about how the wider world works". It's a smart representation of Baracchi's studies of the cognitive abilities of bees and also manages to capture the wider aims of the exhibition.

Art Neuro opens on 6 November, 6pm-10pm. It's then open  from 7-10 November, 10am-10pm, at Hume Studio, Rag Factory, 16-18 Heneage Street, E1 5LJ. Entry is free.

Last Updated 05 November 2014