Exhibit: "The Art of Neuroscience: Image and Understanding 1518-2000" (National Academy of Sciences, Washington, D.C., 16 February - 30 May 2001)
Historians of neuroscience on HISTNEUR-L (The History of Neuroscience Internet Forum) will be interested in the following press release from the National Academy of Sciences (U.S.): * * * * * PRESS RELEASE EXHIBITION TO EXPLORE THE IMAGERY OF NEUROSCIENCE DURING THE PAST 500 YEARS The Art of Neuroscience: Image and Understanding 1518 -- 2000 opens at the National Academy of Sciences on February 16, 2001. This exhibition examines the evolution of neuroscience from the sixteenth century to the present day, encompassing depictions of the brain and central nervous system ranging from works by contemporary imaging specialists and fine artists to reproductions of historical images. It is offered in conjunction with the inaugural Arthur M. Sackler Colloquium and made possible through a generous gift by Mrs. Arthur M. Sackler. To trace western understanding of the brain and central nervous system, this exhibition takes us on a journey from a 1518 woodcut illustration to recent PET scans and in so doing traces the parallel evolution of our knowledge of the brain. According to curator Janis Tomlinson, "the will to image betrays a will to see - and thus, to understand - the structure and function of nerve cells. This exhibition seeks to illustrate the interrelationship of image and scientific knowledge." Although some might say that machines have displaced humans in creating images in the twentieth century, it is nevertheless still the human that guides the machine. Works by contemporary artists who have been inspired by scientific images that are included among the "scientific" images show that the aesthetics of neuroscience and of art are not far apart. Two lectures are offered in conjunction with this exhibition. Dr. Solomon Snyder will present the Inaugural Arthur M. Sackler Lecture, Brain Messengers, on Thursday, February 15, 2001 at 6:00 p.m. Dr. Eric Kandel, 2000 Nobel Laureate, will speak on Molecular Biology of Memory: A Dialogue between Genes and Synapses on Wednesday, March 28, 2001 at 6:00 p.m. The exhibition is open from February 16, 2001 to May 25, 2001. Gallery hours are weekdays, 9 to 5. Both exhibition and lectures are open to the public without charge. Entrance at 2100 C Street, NW. <http://www4.nationalacademies.org/nas/aiashowtime.nsf/ 62d6811df18159bd85256945006dee29/056854808b03d58b852569f5006d9c21?OpenDocument> * * * * * Note that the address given above on two lines is really all one long URL! To spare you another long one... go to: http://www4.nationalacademies.org/nas/aiashowtime.nsf/ and click on "Exhibitions"; then click on "The Art of Neuroscience...", then click on "SACKLER.PDF" in order to open a handsome, printable 15-page color guide to the exhibit -- including brain illustrations in works by Vesalius, Estienne, Eustachio, Willis, Bidloo, Ruysch, Charles Bell, and Cajal. * * * * * I caught wind of this exhibit on National Public Radio's March 11 broadcast of "Weekend Edition--Sunday". Go to: http://search.npr.org/cf/cmn/cmnpd01fm.cfm?PrgDate=03/11/2001&PrgID=10 for the audio report under the blurb: "Brain Pictures (14.4 | 28.8) -- NPR's Alex Van Oss reports on an exhibit at the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, DC that features various images of the human brain. The Art of Neuroscience displays early medical drawings as well as the latest in magnetic resonance imaging. (6:30)" After this week, look for the archived audio files at: http://www.npr.org/ramfiles/wesun/20010311.wesun.05.ram and http://www.npr.org/ramfiles/wesun/20010311.wesun.05.rmm A more recent (March 2) press release on the NAS site updates Kandel's 3/28 lecture title: "On March 28, 2001 at 6:00 p.m., 2000 Nobel Laureate Eric R. Kandel will offer a public lecture entitled: 'Radical Reductionism in Art and Science: The Case of Memory Storage and Its Disorders'. The lecture will be held in the auditorium of the National Academy of Sciences." see: http://www4.nationalacademies.org/nas/nashome.nsf (click on "public lecture") for details. Happy viewing and listening! Russell Johnson HISTNEUR-L administrator and ISHN Secretary