“Your Brain on Art” Chapter 1: Reflection and Discussion Questions

Dec 18

By ArtWell Staff Writer, Nella Rohan

In the spirit of one of ArtWell’s six strategic imperatives–Learning Together, our Executive Director, Malia Gilbert Neal, pioneered ArtWell’s first-ever book club: ReadingWell. We recently had our inaugural ReadingWell discussion to unpack the first chapter of “Your Brain on Art: How the Arts Transform Us” by Susan Magsamen and Ivy Ross. The book explores how arts and aesthetics affect us on a physiological and psychological level, encouraging us to consider the power art has on overall well-being. Each month, one of our staff members will be responsible for leading us through an exploration of what we read and presenting questions that allow us to engage more deeply with the material and understand how it applies to the work we do at ArtWell each day.

Reflection

The Aesthetic Mindset

Right up front, Magsamen and Ross offer a survey tool called The Aesthetic Mindset Index, developed with cognitive neuroscience researcher Ed Vessel to help us ground in and invest in the information to come by measuring how art and aesthetics impact us individually. This assessment allowed us to interrogate our relationship with artistic experiences and consider expanding our awareness of how we feel when moved to view or create art. We were asked to think about the phrases presented, for example, “I see beauty when I look at or experience art,” or “I attend music, dance, theatre, museums, and or digital art activities,” and rate them from 1 (never) to 5 (very often). We are looking forward to retaking the assessment, as the authors suggest, after we’ve finished the book and have had the opportunity to implement some of the ideas presented throughout.

A dominating sentiment within the ReadingWell was that chapter one of YBOA was dense and gave staunch academia; we felt somewhat thwarted by the neuroscience jargon-laden text. To Ross and Magsamen’s credit, they do not hedge about their need to lay the groundwork and provide us with the foundation to understand subsequent chapters through the context of what is happening in our brains when we respond to art. It may not be an easy read, but we could all agree that despite the linguistic heavy lifting, we were already learning things that would forever shift how we think about the role of art in our lives. Further, it has reinforced our commitment to using art to heal Philadelphia youth and send them into the world as adults adept at reframing difficult circumstances and environments to see and create beauty.

4 Core Concepts

One of the most memorable sections of Chapter 1 is structured around the idea that we are “conscious of only about 5 percent of our mental activity…so not all of the information that your brain is processing reaches your consciousness.” Knowing this fact helps us understand our interconnectedness to everything around us. Chapter one contains many scientific building blocks to cultivate our understanding of fundamental neuroscience. Still, fortunately, Ross and Magsamen have organized the content into the following four core concepts: neuroplasticity, enriched environments, the aesthetic triad, and the default mode network.

Advancements in technology have fueled studies on the power of arts or, more specifically, neuroaesthetics. They have made YBOA possible and necessary. The authors contextualize aesthetics within the study of how our senses process information. We must understand this before fully reaping the benefits of applying the ideas offered throughout the rest of the book. I’ve always wondered why my ability to hear people attempting to get my attention would wane as soon as I started texting someone. It turns out the auditory nerve is responsible for that phenomenon. This initial chapter teaches us that paying attention to all the stimuli flowing into our bodies’ systems is impossible. Thus, our brains must rapidly make decisions about where information goes. This concept of salience is also promised to be mentioned throughout the book to talk about this process of our brain naturally filtering out information irrelevant to the most immediate moments we are engaged in.

ArtWell Program Coordinator, Keyona Butler, came up with some thought-provoking discussion questions that helped lead our conversation in chapter one. If you’re reading along with us, please use these questions as the jumping-off point for your reflection or conversation with reading pals.