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Mind Mine was intended by the artists to be an opportunity for children to create a three dimensional model of the structure of the brain and the functions of its component parts. The finished installation proved to be much more. The participating children spent an enormous amount of time and effort in conceptualising the functions and structure of the brain, in building metaphorical representations, and in learning which parts of the brain are responsible for our thoughts and behaviour. They produced a stunning visual analogue which served to educate every young mind who entered the final installation. The end product not only worked on the physical/artistic level, it importantly provided a ‘psychological experience’ to all of the other children who had the unique opportunity to interact with, and learn from, the finished installation.

I was involved in the project shortly after its inception by the artists Neil Taylor and Harriet Murray. We had lengthy discussions about what the brain looks like and how it works and what parts of the brain are responsible for different cognitions, emotions, perceptions, and sensations. It became clear to the artists that function and structure are inseparable whilst attempting to present a larger than life analogue of the most complicated piece of organic material in the universe.

From our initial collaborations, Neil and Harriet began to envision a template for their project which they then brought to a selected group of children by virtue of structured classroom workshops. Starting with examples of everyday behaviours, Neil and Harriet probed the children for suggestions on how the brain may influence these behaviours, what might be happening ‘inside our heads’ when we behave in a certain way, think certain thoughts, perform certain actions. From here on the design process was iterative; the children produced imaginative metaphors for basic brain structure and function. These brainstorming workshops in the classroom were followed up by a series of focused art workshops in the artists’ studios. In these workshops the children were permitted to let their minds roam free and graphically depict what they imagined the brain looked like and what might actually be happening inside our heads while we are engaging in the business of everyday life.

I joined one of these workshops armed with a 3D model of the brain. I was genuinely surprised at the impressive level of knowledge demonstrated by the children, particularly on basic brain structure and neuronal functioning. This particular workshop afforded the children the opportunity to see what the different parts of the brain look like and where the impulses for specific cognitive processes and behaviours are generated. Following a stimulating question and answer session the children were well equipped to envisage, physically implement, and track the flow of information from one part of their model brain to another.

The finished installation proved to be an exciting and educational experience, not only for the children who contributed to its design and construction, but especially for those who immersed themselves in the installation as neuro-chemical analogues, roaming from one part of the installation to another, immersed in a unique inner-space and yet, at the same time, larger than life. Mind Mine proved to be an excellent analogue for the brain, incorporating representations from the basic operating unit of the nervous system, the neuron, to an imposing architectural representation of the anatomical subdivisions of the brain.

As visitors entered the installation they were immediately confronted with a choice of travelling through the left side (left lobe) or right side (right lobe) of the labyrinth. Within each lateralised area of the installation, specific brain functions were illustrated and importantly ‘experienced’ by virtue of interacting with and moving through the analogous and ever-changing landscape. The transmission of electro-chemical signals involved in the processes of synaptic transmission were realised by human actors playing the role of the chemical messengers (neurotransmitters) travelling through the principal communicating cells in the nervous system – the neurons. Many analogues of brain structure and function, from the cortex and the four lobes, to the functioning of the motor and sensory cortices in our everyday movement and perception of sensations were included.

Notably, the model incorporated sensory aspects of brain function, for example, a piano partially hidden within the fabric of the model representing the auditory association cortex. ‘Interactants’ had the opportunity to stimulate, by virtue of key pressing, the part of the brain responsible for auditory perception, and at the same time to reflect on events occurring at the neuronal level within their brain while listening to the sounds they produced. The visual association cortex was housed in the part of the installation that represented the occipital lobe which was furnished with projections of intricate visual displays varying in light and colour intensity. This space provoked reflections on how the visual system perceives light and colour and projects these sensory experiences back out into 3D space. The representation of the transmission of electrical impulses through the brain and down the spinal chord was achieved via a pathway in the form of a ladder which formed the exit from the labyrinthine structure. From beginning to end, one’s journey through the cavernous installations felt like a virtual tour of the inner workings of the mind.

Using art to engage children on the topics of science, and in particular biology, proved in this instance to be a very successful endeavour. The project achieved a visionary merging of two seemingly disparate disciplines. For the children involved in the design and building of Mind Mine, the significant learning outcomes in relation to the biological/neuronal bases of behaviour were realised through the application of creative and artistic practices. The final result served to educate more children in turn on an aspect of science which most children of this age group rarely get the opportunity to explore in such detail.

Dr Elaine Beattie, Department of Psychology, Goldsmiths, University of London, New Cross, London, SE14 6NW.
Email: e.beattie@gold.ac.uk