Does a Neuroscience of Art Make Sense ?

By Jean-Pierre Changeux

Abstract

Does a neuroscience of art make sense? To answer this question, Jean-Pierre Changeux begins his lecture by giving a definition of art and aesthetics. He then explains how the human brain works from a neurologist’s point of view, and details its evolution throughout prehistory. Changeux’s goal is to demonstrate the link between art and cognitive conscience. To do so, he shows the audience how cultural experiences make the brain react. Genes, he says, are 100% responsible for neural development. And so are aesthetic experiences, he ads with humor. Changeux finishes his lecture by claiming that rules exist in art, and he even gives examples of these rules: novelty, surprise, and parsimony.

Summary

00:00:10 – 1. Introduction

00:02:32 – 2.Art
00:02:35 – 2.1. A definition of art and aesthetics
00:09:43 – 2.2. The evolution of art
00:12:08 – 2.3. Links between art and cognitive conscience

00:14:10 – 3. Neurology
00:14:15 – 3.1. The building blocks of the brain
00:18:50 – 3.2. The evolution of the brain
00:24:40 – 3.2.1. The artist’s “habitus”
00:28:30 – 3.2.2. Discovery of art with Homo sapiens?
00:29:32 – 3.2.3. Genetic deficit in music perception
00:31:30 – 3.2.4. The human genome and the non-linear evolution of brain complexity
00:36:20 – 3.2.5. Innate universal disposition of the human newborn
00:42:55 – 3.2.6. The cultural evolution of the brain
00:42:55 – 3.3. The sacrifice of Paetus by Antoine Rivalz
00:47:30 – 3.4. L’image disparaît by Savador Dali
00:48:50 – 3.5. Processing of visual image: emotion and feeling
00:58:40 – 3.6. Neuronal bases of esthetic efficacy
01:00:38 – 3.7. Sainte Anne by Leonardo da Vinci

01:03:22 – 4. Creation and the rules of art
01:03:59 – 4.1. The concept of “epigenetic rule”
01:08:36 – 4.2. Some rules of art: novelty, surprise, and parsimony
01:12:26 – 4.3. Brain potentials reflect semantic incongruity
01:13:44 – 4.4. Oneself-as-another: the search for shared recognition
01:14:11 – 4.5. The exemplum
01:14:40 – 4.6. A Darwinian model of creation