Can science and art find common ground? Are scientific and artistic quests mutually exclusive? In this new book; neuroscientist Eric Kandel; whose interests span the fields of science and art; explores how reductionism—the distillation of larger scientific or aesthetic concepts into smaller; more tractable ideas—has been used by scientists and artists alike to pursue their respective truths. Their common use of reductionist strategies demonstrates how science can inform the way we experience a work of art and seek to understand its meaning. Kandel draws on his Nobel Prize-winning work studying the neurobiological underpinnings of learning and memory in the humble sea slug; whose simple brain helps illuminate the complex workings of higher animal minds. He extends these findings to the complexities of human perception; which uses bottom-up sensory and top-down cognitive functions to perceive the world and to appreciate and understand works of art.At the heart of this book is an elegant elucidation of the pivotal contribution of reductionism to modern artrsquo;s extraordinary evolution and to its role in a monumental shift in artistic perspective. Reductionism was a driving force in the transition from figurative art to the first explorations of abstract art in the works of Turner; Monet; Kandinsky; Schoenberg; and Mondrian. Kandel explains how the New York School of Pollock; de Kooning; Rothko; Louis; Turrell; and Flavin arrived at their particular forms of abstract expressionism in the postwar era; and concludes with Katz; Warhol; Close; and Sandback; who built upon the advances of the New York School to reimagine figurative and minimal art. Featuring captivating drawings of the brain alongside full-color reproductions of modern art masterpieces; this book brings science and art into closer relation.
#1470957 in eBooks 2016-07-06 2016-07-06File Name: B01I2GSOPG
Review
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. Classic ScottBy Katie PrestwichThis story is fun. romantic. and adventurous. just as you would expect from Walter Scott. I liked the characters as well. The situations were a little frivolous. so I didnt like it as well as Ivanhoe or Quentin Durward. but it was enjoyable and entertaining.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. One of Sir Walters BestBy Karen Amrhein"The Talisman" is among my favorite of Sir Walter Scotts novels. after "Quentin Durward" and "Ivanhoe". Its protagonist. the Scottish knight Sir Kenneth. is keen to clear his name. unjustly tarnished. as he fights alongside his liege. Richard the Lionheart. and encounters the famed Saladin. Its noteworthy that Scott presents a positive portrait of the latter. and the "Saracen" in general. writing as he did in the early 19th Century. "The Talisman" is an engaging mix of chivalry. romance. and intrigue. I recommend it to those who enjoy the "Swashbuckling" literature of Sabatini. Dumas. Anthony Hope. and Baroness Orczy.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. A ClassicBy Brett BernerThe Talisman takes place at the end of the Third Crusade. mostly in the camp of the Crusaders in Palestine. Scheming and partisan politics. as well as the illness of King Richard the Lionheart. are placing the Crusade in danger. The main characters are the Scottish knight Kenneth. who is a fictional character version of David of Scotland. Earl of Huntingdon. who did in fact return from the third Crusade in 1190. Richard the Lionheart. Saladin. and Edith Plantagenet. a relative of Richard.
