Looking at these Greg Dunn Sumi-e paintings, you’d be convinced they were centuries old, but that couldn’t possibly be the case as his muses are brain cells. That’s right, using an ancient Japanese rendering style commonly characterized by its depictions of temperament rather than physical appearance, Dunn illustrates neurons as they’d look under powerful microscopes. Dunn borrows from the Sumi-e style further by using photomicrographs only as references and painting neurons as he feels they should be presented, producing entirely original images.
Greg Dunn explains that painting neurons allows him to fuse his loves of art and science. Being an introspective person, he dwells a lot on his thoughts, so it’s only appropriate that he’d end up illustrating components that make up people’s brains.
Traditional Japanese Neuron Paintings
Greg Dunn Uses Classic Style to Render Modern Discoveries
Trend Themes
1. Neuroscience-inspired Art - Artists leveraging the brain's complexity to augment beyond traditional approaches and creating new opportunities for exhibitions and artwork crossover.
2. Fusing Art and Science - Pairing art and science by adopting scientific methodology and techniques into art production is a new trend that offers endless innovation opportunities in the creative industry.
3. Realistic Representation of Science - Science is inspiring artists to create better, accurate, and realistic representations that can educate and inspire individuals more realistically and create new platforms for the public to understand research.
Industry Implications
1. Art - The art industry can leverage neuroscience to create new art concepts that can attract science enthusiasts as customers and increase sales.
2. Scientific Research - Research organizations and scientific institutions can use neuroscience-inspired art to create educational content for the public to engage and understand research better.
3. Technology - Designer and technology firms can use neuroscience principles to create interfaces and products catering to the needs of neuro-diverse individuals to boost inclusion and competition.