Die Plastizität von Kunst und Gehirn

The present text on the plasticity of art and brain was presented by Horst Bredekamp at the symposium Brain Roads. Exploring Neuroplasticity Through Art and Science. This event, held in Berlin on November 2, 2023 as part of the Berlin Science Week 2023 and supported by the Cluster of Excellence “Matters of Activity. Image Space Material” of the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and by the Ambassade de France en Allemagne, was organized by Patricia Ribault and Olaf Avenati with the aim of fostering a dialogue between the arts (especially graphic arts and design) and neurosurgery. Featuring a keynote lecture by Hugues Duffau (Professor and Chairman of the Neurosurgery Department in the Montpellier University Medical Center and Head of the team “Plasticity of the central nervous system, human stem cells and glial tumors” at the Institute for Neurosciences of Montpellier), the symposium also invited artists and scholars from the humanities to reflect on the unique aspects of the neurosurgical procedures performed by Duffau and his team, during which the patient remains awake throughout the entire operation and actively participates in it by engaging in an actual dialogue. More information about the event is available at the following link: https://www.matters-of-activity.de/en/activities/11943/brain-roads. A volume collecting the results of the various editions of the symposium and the activities related to this project is forthcoming (in English). A heartfelt thank you goes to Patricia Ribault and Olaf Avenati, not only for organizing and making the Brain Roads events possible, but also for the opportunity to reproduce this contribution in the 22nd issue of Philosophy Kitchen. Finally, sincere thanks to Professor Horst Bredekamp for his generosity in making his text available to the readers of Philosophy Kitchen.