It takes courage and stamina to be an artist. It’s not surprising that many of us question our career choices. While our friends educate new generations, build homes, and even save lives — undeniably useful occupations — what about us? What do artists contribute, and more broadly, what purpose does art serve?
Susan Magsamen, a researcher in neuroaesthetics at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, and Ivy Ross, the Vice President of Hardware Design at Google, answer this perplexing question in Your Brain on Art: How the Arts Transform Us. By consulting scientists, healthcare professionals, and artists worldwide, the authors uncover a new and powerful body of evidence-based insights.
Art, as it turns out, is not a mere pastime. Cancer patients heal faster through aesthetic changes to hospital settings; first responders recover more effectively from trauma through painting; and virtual reality programs can alleviate pain. The arts also effectively address mental health issues, and simple activities like doodling have been proven to ease daily life stress.
For professional artists, amateurs, and art lovers alike, this book sends a profoundly uplifting message. Art is life-sustaining. It may not set a broken bone or fix a leaky tap but art achieves equally measurable ends: it can heal, restore, and, even in the worst of times, allow us to flourish. ■
OTHER ART BOOK REVIEWS YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED
- Bookmark: New Book about Bertram Brooker
- The Role of Textiles in Relation to Art
- The Quest for the Meaning of Art
- Quick Pick - J.E.H. MacDonald: Up Close
- Mary Pratt: A Love Affair with Vision
- The Role of Textiles in Relation to Art
- Surreal Spaces: The Art and Life of Leonora Carrington
- Early Days: Indigenous Art from the McMichael
- Bianca Bosker: The Quest for the Meaning of Art
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