Brains on Art:
BRAIN WAVES
Galleria Huuto, Jätkäsaari 2
27 March – 13 April 2014
The Brain Waves exhibition by the Brains on Art collective features a series of works that get their inspiration from brain research and cognitive science. The works employ scientific research methods for artistic purposes. The project emphasizes the dialog between two different fields: art and science. The works are based on the group’s discussions, sharing of information and shared artistic reflection.
The collective members are all interested in the utilization of science and technology in art. Both science and art deal with creative experiments and asking questions, even though the ideals of exactness and objectivity are often associated with science. The works explore the boundaries of science, people’s relationship to scientific data and the creativity, uncertainty and fallibility of research. Ultimately, these two separate worlds appear to be very similar, only using different methods and ways of talking.
The works are based on an encounter between a human and a machine, allowing the viewer to manipulate and produce things with the help of technology, but also turning them into a research subject. The works utilize a technology that is usually used as part of brain research. Brain research is a very young field of science. Hence, our knowledge of the most important and most mysterious human organ is very limited. The works collect data on people’s brain functions by measuring the brain’s electrical activity. The EEG equipment sometimes produces image collages and sometimes Dadaist poems. It will be interesting to see how the audience reacts to the data that they are not able to interpret. This encounter between science and art gives us information on our brain and ourselves, but the true nature and functions of our brain remain a mystery.
Jaakko Uoti
Brains on Art:
Kasperi Mäki-Reinikka, Jukka Toivanen, Aleksander Alafuzoff, Henri Kotkanen and Jari Torniainen
Brains on Art is a Helsinki-based art collective that was established in 2010. Its installations use a combination of scientific and artistic methods. The collective consists of art education, electrical engineering and cognitive science students who are all interested in the dialog between different fields.
In 2013, the collective presented its artworks at the Experimental Event in Pori, at the Autumn School on Computational Creativity in Porvoo, at Espoo’s Kunsthalle Spring Festival, at the Warehouse Tech exhibition held at L3 Gallery in Jätkäsaari and at the XL Art Space in Helsinki. The works and the science behind them have been presented at the ACE 13 Conference in the Netherlands, during open days at the cognitive science department and as part of the art and technology minor study program at Aalto ARTS.
The exhibition is supported by Finnish Cultural Foundation
