WESTVILLE – Have you ever wondered: Do humans only use 10% of their brains? Or, what about what's happening in a teenage brain? Can we grow new brain cells during our lifetime? Find answers to these and other questions, as well as experience the beautiful wonders of the brain during a special Brain Awareness Day event: The Artful Tour of the Brain.
Held Tuesday, March 6, 2018 from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. in the Purdue Northwest Westville Campus Library-Student-Faculty (LSF) building, Gallery144, the event is free and open to the public, including children and families. Refreshments and giveaways will be offered.
Hands-on demonstrations for all ages will be featured, including a real human brain for viewing. Experience the sights of optical illusions, tastes of tricking the taste buds, the feelings of phantom limb, and much more. Visitors will be able to explore a giant “brainatarium,” stepping inside the structure to learn about the different parts of the brain. Brainatarium tours will be held every half hour while the other exhibits will be ongoing. Brain-related artwork will be featured all week for visitors to enjoy at their leisure.
Featured Artist: Laura Jacobson
Laura Jacobson, a Palo Alto based artist will feature several works which were recently exhibited at New York University’s Langone Medical Center. Our Cosmic Brain celebrates the universe within our brain.
In part a complete set of MRI’s of her brain taken in 2011 suggested new terrain for Jacobson. In addition to large colorful prints, reflecting the structure in multiple layers and artful patterns, several prints of Jacobson’s very colorful Brain Scapes, based on her ceramic works, are included. She includes impressions of tools and gadgets demonstrating the malleability and plasticity of the brain and symbolizing the input of influences such as culture and industry.
Lee Tracy’s work is also based on a set of MRIs which she, herself, had. She gathered 35 images from a series of MRI’s and assembled Negative to Positive in 2014, inscribing optimistic thoughts and personal reflections, assembling them in light box installations. Several will be exhibited.
“As an educator and neuroscientist, I firmly believe that the science of the brain should not be accessible only to those who research it. At this event, everyone has the opportunity to discover their curious inner scientist,” says Psychology Professor Christina Ragan, organizer of the event.
For more information, please contact Dr. Christina Ragan, Assistant Professor of Psychology, at ragan1@pnw.edu. To request a disability-related accommodation for this event, contact the Office of Equity, Diversity & Inclusion at the Westville Campus at 219-785-5545 five days prior to the event.
This event is sponsored by the PNW Psychology Department, the Dana Foundation, the department of University Art Collections and its Odyssey Events Series, Honors College, Psi Chi, the Psychology Club, and the PNW ASL Club.
