“Iron rusts from disuse; stagnant water loses its purity and in cold weather becomes frozen; even so does inaction sap the vigor of the mind.”- Leonardo da Vinci I haven't heard this quote before. By some strange coincidence I accidentally came across it only a few weeks ago, as I was thinking of writing a... Continue Reading →
Slowly but surely the brain is emerging
After a brief hiatus earlier this year, I am back at my art table. I am not sure what was going on with me over the past couple of months, but I just couldn’t bring myself to start a new project. I have been marinating a few ideas and deciding on the best technical approach.... Continue Reading →
“Finding Your Self”
Finding Your Self, 2019 Here is the final version of this 5 month (!!!) long project. As a refresher, it is based on a closeup microscopy image of a retina, which is responsible for our sense of vision. The blue branches are blood vessels. The red strands are axons of neurons that transmit the information... Continue Reading →
Evolution of ideas
The original idea for my current project was inspired by a specific series of events in my life last year. To me, using the layers of neurons in this work represents certain layers of my knowledge, interests and passions, which have been temporarily covered up and moved to the back burner. Looking through my... Continue Reading →
“Art of the Brain” Exhibition
I am thrilled to announce that my artwork will be featured at the”Art of the Brain” exhibit at Mount Sinai next Monday (3/12). There will be an opening reception and over 80 total pieces of scientific images and sculptures from Sinai. The reception will be held at 6 – 8 pm and the exhibit will... Continue Reading →
“All Wrapped Up”
Here is the long promised piece I made last year. It is based on a confocal microscopy image that I took at my previous job. All Wrapped Up, 2017 Just like a wire, neurons use electrical signals to convey information. And similarly to wires, neurons require outer insulation for efficient communication. This insulation is provided... Continue Reading →
Bridging science, art and society
Last year, when I founded NeuroBead, I based it on the idea that scientists like myself would want to see beautiful images from their research commemorated as pieces of art, that they could display on their walls. Many academic institutions, especially neuroscience departments, decorate their hallways with enlarged photos of cells that were taken under... Continue Reading →
“Branching Out” – the story of Sholl analysis
I have always been attracted to symmetry. Ever since childhood, symmetry and equilibrium have always put me at ease and gave me a sense of aesthetic satisfaction. In graduate school, I studied the process of differentiation (read "development") of nerve cells called neurons. Neurons have beautiful architecture, but are never actually symmetrical. Yet they still... Continue Reading →
The Royal Astrocyte
When I made the decision to start NeuroBead, I began to browse the internet for some inspiring images of neuronal cells in culture. The perfect picture had to meet several criteria. It had to be colorful, bright and vibrant, scientifically accurate and detailed, and yet simple enough to make in my first attempt. For my... Continue Reading →
A touch of spring in December
After digging through my old boxes an assembling the branch of Morning Glory from flowers that I have made ages ago, I felt inspired to make some more arrangements from what I already had in stock. I found 5 delicate pink flowers of fuchsia, that I have probably made equally long ago. After doing a... Continue Reading →