When it comes to your brain, what’s not to love? At the same time, it’s not very often that we celebrate this incredible organ. That’s why Buffalo’s Science & Art Cabaret wants to pay tribute to the brain, by hosting a brain-themed cabaret titled “Love Yer Brain” that will be held on Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2014 at the Ninth Ward at Babeville.
“Brains. Most of us have them, but none of us really know how they work,” says Co-organizer Will Kinney, a UB physics professor. “These kilo-and-a-half blobs of neurons are the fount of all human creativity, love, empathy and knowledge. ‘Love Yer Brain’ puts the physical locus of our mind in the spotlight for an evening of diverse and creative viewpoints from local experts on art, media, and neuroscience. Yes, it may be brain surgery, but we make it fun!”
Co-organizer John Massier adds, “Despite residing solidly in the 21st century — effectively, living in the future we all once imagined — no amount of technological, scientific, artistic, or social progress is an adequate guard against slipping into a new Age of Unreason. It was one of Carl Sagan’s biggest fears as he described the ‘demon-haunted’ and superstitious world we inhabit. In the end there is nothing that will save us from this more than our brain. It is our primary organ for perceiving and making sense of the world. Some might suggest it has a huge hand in creating that world. It certainly has a gigantic part in critical thinking and imagination, two characteristics key to both science and art. Without these, we are lost.”
Come celebrate Buffalo’s Science & Art Cabaret, as it turns five years old. The cabaret, co-organized by the University at Buffalo College of Arts and Sciences, Hallwall’s Contemporary Arts Center and Buffalo Museum of Science, is an exploration of the worlds of art and science, and delves into how the two commingle. The event is free (cash bar) and open to the public, and merely asks that you arrive open minded and willing to entertain a line-up that includes:
- A presentation by Josephine Anstey, UB chair of media study, on “Improvising Consciousness: The Past and Future of the Human Mind”
- A recorded interview by Hallwalls curator John Massier with California artist Deborah Aschheim, who is known for her neurological art
- A discussion by Christopher Cohan, UB professor of pathology and anatomical sciences, on “The Beauty of the Brain and a Museum Where You Can See It”
- A talk by local neurosurgeon Lee Guterman titled, “It’s Not Rocket Science, It’s Only Brain Surgery”
“Love Yer Brain” | Wednesday, Oct. 22 | 7pm | Ninth Ward at Babeville | 341 Delaware Ave., Buffalo | Free to the public | Cash bar | Funded in part by UB’s Technē Institute