Susan Magsamen:Your Brain on Art: How the Arts Transform Us
Art Heals All Wounds
06/28/23
•46m
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Today, I’m joined by Susan Magsamen, Founder and Executive Director of the International Arts + Mind Lab at the Johns Hopkins University Center for Applied Neuroscience. She’s also the co-author of Your Brain on Art: How the Arts Transform Us, which explores how aesthetic experiences impact the human brain and body. In our conversation, Susan shares where her fascination for the intersection of art, science, and education stems from. She describes the research and writing process for Your Brain on Art, and goes into detail about some of the standout sections of the book, including the role art can play in community building and physical healing.
So much of Susan’s work is centered around the extraordinary ways art measurably changes the brain, body, and behavior. By breaking down the silos between scientists and artists, this knowledge can be translated into specific practices that advance individual and communal wellbeing. Your Brain on Art is an approachable starting point for understanding how humans are wired for the arts and ways we continue to evolve through creative expression. Susan is also the Co-Director of the NeuroArts Blueprint. We dive into the five-year global initiative she and her team are building in the field of neural arts. Their goal is to ensure art becomes a part of mainstream medicine and public health conversation.
Listen, rate, and review to Art Heals All Wounds on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Castbox, or on your favorite podcast platform.
Topics Covered:
● How Susan and co-writer Ivy Ross brought Your Brain on Art to life
● Key terms and concepts related to the neuroscience of art
● Examples of the physiological, psychological, and sociological impacts of art
● What gives Susan hope about how art can support communities in addressing certain social issues
● Insights from research that shows how art can impact the progression of certain diseases and disorders
Guest Info:
● Your Brain on Art Website
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● Art Heals All Wounds Instagram
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Previous Episode
Support for Political Prisoners with Rigo 23, Painter and Activist
June 21, 2023
•63m
Today, I’m joined by Rigo 23, a painter, muralist, and activist who has undertaken collaborative art projects with some of America's political prisoners. In our conversation, Rigo expands on the inspiration and process behind two of his works: His recent February 31st Exhibit that includes work with, and inspired by, the Angola 3 and a large-scale statue of Leonard Peltier based on one of Peltier’s self-portraits.
Herman Wallace, Albert Woodfox, and Robert King, also known as the Angola 3, were subjected to a combined 114 years in closed cell restriction, which is the longest known solitary confinement incarceration in world history. February 31st is an exhibit that invites viewers to explore the work of Rigo 23 that was a collaboration with Wallace, Woodfox, and King, and inspired by the unique worldview that Herman, Albert, and Robert developed during their years of deprivation and inhumane conditions.
Rigo also shares the story behind his statue of Leonard Peltier, an Indigenous rights activist who is still serving a prison sentence from when he was wrongfully convicted of murdering two FBI agents in 1975. The statue Rigo created, based on Leonard Peltier’s self-portrait, has traveled around the country, and exemplifies how art can harness support for those unjustly imprisoned.
Listen, rate, and review to Art Heals All Wounds on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Castbox, or on your favorite podcast platform.
Topics Covered:
● The personal experience that sparked Rigo’s interest in learning about the lived experiences of political prisoners
● The lasting impact on Rigo from his relationship with the Angola 3 and Leonard Peltier
● How Leonard Peltier’s self-portrait in prison inspired Rigo to create a solidarity statue How the sculpture of Leonard was stolen, then found with community help
● Art as a way to go beyond structural division by race, gender, and beliefs
Resources Mentioned:
● February 31st show at the Anglim/Trimble Gallery
Guest Info:
● rigo23info@gmail.com
Follow Me:
● Art Heals All Wounds Website
● Art Heals All Wounds Instagram
● Art Heals All Wounds Facebook
Next Episode
100 Things: Setting Intentions
July 5, 2023
•8m
How do we creatively increase empathy? What about increasing compassion for ourselves? Last year I experienced chronic pain for 8 months, which made me think a lot about empathy for those in pain of any kind—physical, emotional, or mental. Are our societies built for those who suffer from chronic pain? Can we increase empathy through art? Reading the book Your Brain on Artand talking with its co-author Susan Magsamen has really inspired me in the ways that so many people are already doing this.
Do we begin with more compassion for ourselves? How do we set intentions around practicing that self-compassion. I thank a guest from Season 2, Ceci Najar, who wrote a memoir called Unf*ckupable: A Love Story for inspiring me with the list she made when she decided to change her life. Sitting down and writing 100 things to see, do, or have helped her to believe that she deserved to have things that had always felt out of reach before.
How do you set intentions? Do you, like me, feel resistance to the idea that you deserve the things on your list? I’d love for you to share! Reach me at arthealsallwoundspodcast.com.
Follow Me:
● Art Heals All Wounds Website
● Art Heals All Wounds Instagram
● Art Heals All Wounds Twitter
● Art Heals All Wounds Facebook
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