Reductionism in Art and Brain Science：Bridging the Two Cultures

Canscienceandartfindcommonground?Arescientificandartisticquestsmutuallyexclusive?Inthisnewbook，neuroscientistEricKandel，whoseinterestsspanthefieldsofscienceandart，exploreshowreductionism—thedistillationoflargerscientificoraestheticconceptsintosmaller，moretractableideas—hasbeenusedbyscientistsandartistsaliketopursuetheirrespectivetruths.Theircommonuseofreductioniststrategiesdemonstrateshowsciencecaninformthewayweexperienceaworkofartandseektounderstanditsmeaning.KandeldrawsonhisNobelPrize-winningworkstudyingtheneurobiologicalunderpinningsoflearningandmemoryinthehumbleseaslug，whosesimplebrainhelpsilluminatethecomplexworkingsofhigheranimalminds.Heextendsthesefindingstothecomplexitiesofhumanperception，whichusesbottom-upsensoryandtop-downcognitivefunctionstoperceivetheworldandtoappreciateandunderstandworksofart.Attheheartofthisbookisanelegantelucidationofthepivotalcontributionofreductionismtomodernart'sextraordinaryevolutionandtoitsroleinamonumentalshiftinartisticperspective.ReductionismwasadrivingforceinthetransitionfromfigurativearttothefirstexplorationsofabstractartintheworksofTurner，Monet，Kandinsky，Schoenberg，andMondrian.KandelexplainshowtheNewYorkSchoolofPollock，deKooning，Rothko，Louis，Turrell，andFlavinarrivedattheirparticularformsofabstractexpressionisminthepostwarera，andconcludeswithKatz，Warhol，Close，andSandback，whobuiltupontheadvancesoftheNewYorkSchooltoreimaginefigurativeandminimalart.Featuringcaptivatingdrawingsofthebrainalongsidefull-colorreproductionsofmodernartmasterpieces，thisbookbringsscienceandartintocloserrelation.