IAM Lab News and Stories Norman Galinsky Draws Stillness and Energy from Geometric Art When you first view Norman Galinsky’s minimalistic art, you may not guess that the artist’s first career was in engineering. Ever since childhood, Galinsky’s two main passions were science and making art. Science took precedence in high school—he was a runner-up in the prestigious Westinghouse National Talent search science competition—and, at the urging of his […] Read More New Research: Think Tank Findings on The State of Music-Based Interventions for Mental Illness How can music support mental health? While hundreds of studies have been conducted to answer this question, the availability and application of music interventions for mental health remain limited. Part of the challenge is the multidisciplinary nature of this research and difficulties in synthesizing findings across different fields including psychology, neurology, psychiatry, music, and public health. […] Read More New IAM Lab Study Charts Use of Music Interventions to Treat Serious Mental Illness The healing power of music for mental health has been formally studied across many professions – from psychology to music therapy to nursing – dating back to the 1940s. A recent global scoping review evaluated published research on music-related interventions for serious mental health issues and underscored the therapeutic potential of music to support mental […] Read More More Than Words: Why Poetry is Good for Our Health “Let the globe, if nothing else, say this is true: That even as we grieved, we grew That even as we hurt, we hoped That even as we tired, we tried That we’ll forever be tied together, victorious” Amanda Gorman, the 2017 National Youth Poet Laureate, spoke these powerful words at the 2020 presidential inauguration […] Read More Sound Health Network Launches to Advance Music and Health Research A growing chorus of scientists, researchers, musicians, clinicians, and patients interested in music and health now have a new network to help bring them together. On Tuesday, January 26, the Sound Health Network launched with an hourlong online event featuring renowned researchers like Francis Collins and clinicians like Sanjay Gupta alongside world-class musicians like Renée […] Read More The Silkroad Ensemble Weaves Together Music and People Music has long been recognized for its ability to bring people together. But can its healing powers help to suture the divides wrought by pandemic distancing and growing social unrest? The Silkroad Ensemble shows us the possibilities even in the midst of the most challenging circumstances. This award-winning team of virtuosos has met the challenges […] Read More The Art of Nostalgia: Using the Past for Relief in the Present Pandemic When the pandemic put me in lockdown, I decided to make use of extra time at home by sorting through boxes of memorabilia in my closet. My goal: throw stuff out and reduce clutter. But as I blew the dust off old family photos, concert ticket stubs, baseball cards and playbills, I enjoyed a fringe […] Read More How Video Games Can Be a Healthy Escape During Lockdown In the middle of lockdown, I was on an island fishing with my girlfriend. After selling our catch at the local store, we took an impromptu date to the museum and aquarium, admiring their collections. And, seeing as we were the only ones there (save for one sleepy museum attendant), we snapped an endless stream […] Read More Arts in the Aftermath: Helping Kids Heal From Natural Disasters As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread, natural disasters have further compounded the disruption to the lives of families and children across the United States. During one of the worst fire seasons on record in the West, a series of major wildfires burned down thousands of homes and millions of acres of land, displacing hundreds […] Read More Artists Send a Loud and Clear Message: Go Vote As we inch closer to Election Day 2020 in the United States and the COVID-19 pandemic makes voting in person a risky endeavor, today’s visual artists are galvanizing people across the country to cast their ballots. During the last presidential election, in 2016, nearly half of the voting-age population in the US didn’t vote. This […] Read More ← Back More → Join the neuroaesthetics conversation. Subscribe here.
