Nervous System and the Arts

So...among the other things I do, like thesis work, I'm also very active with a group on campus that promotes the participation of women in the Sciences.  We recently pulled off our most ambitious endeavor yet, an event entitled Art of Science...Science of Art.  So many things fell into place and clicked at the right time for us to pull off this great event.  We were able to fold into a big deal event on campus, The Leonard Bernstein Festival of the Creative Arts  and to be honest, I'm feeling quite triumphant.

Art of Science...Science of Art was a slide talk in which scientists spoke to how art informs and inspires their science and artists spoke to how science informs and inspires their art.  The speakers shared some refreshing perspectives.  I learned that big deal institutes support artists in residence, and I got a feel for how commonality could be reached in an interdisciplinary dialogue between experts in two apparently divergent fields of study.  I'd be remiss, though, if I didn't mention the inspiration and selfish motivations underlying my desire to open a dialogue about science inspiring art and vice versa.

It all began with an Etsy search for earrings, with 'dendrite' as a search term (I know, nerdy.  I'm a neuroscientist.  I get a pass).  As fortune would have it,  I happened upon the Nervous System shop and I. fell. in. love.  I saw they were local and I figured I could justify buying jewelry for the sake of SCIENCE! (cue: Thomas Dolby).  Again, quite fortuitously, all fell into place.  I invited Nervous System to speak at our event and they accepted.

Jessica Rosenkrantz, co-founder of Nervous System, captivated artists, scientists and enthusiasts alike, with the Nervous System design process. I picked up radiolaria earrings for the event and my ever Notable (not so Potable) Neighbor Sister loaned me her radiolaria necklace.   Things around here haven't been terribly sartorial lately so here's a teaser.  Perhaps a couple pics of the event will follow but for now, please appreciate the awesome handicrafts of Nervous System.