Matthew Pelowski (PI)
Matthew is Assistant Professor of Cognitive and Neuroaesthetics at the Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, with a dual affiliation in the Vienna Cognitive Science Hub, and head of the ARTIS Lab (Art Research on Transformations of Individuals and Society). He is also the coordinator of and EU-Horizon 2020 project of the same name. His lab conducts empirical research on a number of aspects of people’s appreciation of visual art, with specific interest on profound, emotional, or even life-changing experiences in the museum, and also, recently, the relationship between changes in people’s brains as a result of neurodegenerative diseases and changes in their produced art.
Julia S. Crone (Co-PI)
Julia is a senior research scientist at the University of Vienna and PI of the Crone Neurocognition Lab. Her work focuses on complex interactions, network dynamics, as well as intense conscious experiences. She combines computational approaches in neuroimaging, ultrasonic brain stimulation, and psychopharmacological neuromodulation to understand the role of complex brain network dynamics in the emergence of conscious and aesthetic experiences in the healthy and diseased brain.
Blanca T. M. Spee (Co-PI)
Blanca is a postdoctoral researcher focusing on bridging art research and neuroaesthetics with clinical medicine in the field of neurodegenerative diseases, neuropsychopharmacology, and neuromodulation. Her research focuses on research in Parkinson’s disease using epidemiology, quantitative and qualitative methods, transformative research, and creativity-based art therapies and interventions. She is a co-editor of a recent book: Art and Neurological Disorders: Illuminating the Intersection of Creativity and the Changing Brain.
Franz R. Schmid – Doctoral Candidate Unlocking the Muse project at the Crone LAB
Franz is a doctoral candidate working with ultrasound neuromodulation and neuroimaging. His research focuses on the role of the dopaminergic pathways in cognitive flexibility, creativity, and artistic expressivity.
Paula Angermair – Doctoral Candidate Unlocking the Muse project at the Artis LAB
Paula is a doctoral candidate at the Artis Lab. As part of the Unlocking the Muse team, she investigates the intersection of neuropharmacology, creativity, and artistic expression in the context of Parkinson’s disease. Central to her research are antiparkinsonian drugs and their impact on the artistic brain, the role of dopamine – and the question of what makes an artist.
Main Research and Transdisciplinary Collaborators
Director, Radboudumc Center of Expertise for Parkinson & Movement Disorders, Department of Neurology, Radboudumc, The Netherlands
Transformative learning researcher, Radboudumc Health Academy,
The Netherlands
Doctoral candidate, Radboudumc Health Academy, The Netherlands
Artistic Direction, artist, theatre maker,
director, designer and actress
Further Research Collaborators
Sirwan Darweesh
Department of Neurology, Radboudumc, The Netherlands
Alby Richard
Department of Neurosciences, University of Montreal, Canada
Research Assistants and Research Fellows
Young-Ah Kim
Vienna Cognitive Science Hub, University of Vienna, Austria
Lode Busselman
Department of Neurology, Radboudumc, The Netherlands
Sara Zeggio
Department of Neurology, Radboudumc, The Netherlands
Transdisciplinary and Private Sector Collaborators
Kamer 8, the Niederlande