Module 2

a)      What the brain draws from: Art and neuroscience

i)        The brain reacts to art due to different receptors that make us recognize patterns such as faces and symmetry.  It is due to this recognition that makes people see art and understand what it means. If the artwork is the illusion of something that the brain recognizes image then your mind perceives it as such.

b)      CARTA: Neurobiology Neurology and Art and Aesthetics

i)        There are reasons why some pieces of art have more meaning than other to specific people. The mind recognizes art and finds some art more appealing because of Neuro receptors in the brain. Art is considered appealing as long as it meets certain standards that the brain is looking for such as the grouping of certain colors, contrast of lighting and causing attention to a single cue which ‘excites’ the brain.

c)       Aesthetics: Philosophy of the Arts

i)        Throughout history art and aesthetics and what makes art has been explained in a variety of different ways. Many great thinkers have attempted to explain what makes a great work of art and why humans are drawn to art. These different thoughts are broken into different periods ad explained by the thinker and their ideas.

2)      The philosopher's theory on aesthetics I feel is most important is Avant-Garde theory which was promoted by Tolstoy which states a person should not define what a work of art is but the more usefulness of studying the idea behind the work of art.

3)      I think the Changeux and Ramachandran idea of art was interesting and actually very expressive of how we view the arts. The most interesting thin was Ramachandran’s explanation of how the brain treats portraits as a problem solving equation almost and that it is partial why we like looking at art because there is self-gratification on when we understand the art and its meaning.  

4)      The videos and articles relate to the reading because the reading is introducing what art is and its meaning. That is what the entire beginning of the book, why artists make art and what it is.

5)      The films and article are interesting, and express more clearly what the books attempts to explanation. They do this by the visual movements present in the presentations. The lecturers express their ideas by showing what they mean to say with examples they use and how their ideas relate to the idea of art and what art is.