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Carving out Creativity

Description

In what ways do our creative bodies and brains connect as we are making art or visiting a museum?  This team of engineers, neuroscientists, and artists wants to expand the ways we experience art. They are using the  senses of sight, touch, and hearing as media. While stone carvers create sculptures, scientists and engineers are  collecting data from brain activity and other biometric data such as muscle movements, heartbeats, body temperature,  breathing, and sweating. This data will be layered with audio and video to create immersive experiences for people to  experience art together, even if they are far apart. Virginia Tech’s ICAT and Innovation Campus co-funded the “Bridging  Physical Distances” that supports this work.

Documentation 

Fig. 1: Tanner Upthegrove leads audio and tapping synchronization with carvers to establish baseline measure.
Fig. 1: Tanner Upthegrove leads audio and tapping synchronization with carvers to establish baseline measure.
Fig. 2: Shriya Panta, undergraduate researcher in IDPro course, sets up EEG cap with GRAs.
Fig. 2: Shriya Panta, undergraduate researcher in IDPro course, sets up EEG cap with GRAs.
Fig. 3: Live carving demo and brain activity at the Virginia Tech Science Festival (need to anonymize for public sharing).
Fig. 3: Live carving demo and brain activity at the Virginia Tech Science Festival (need to anonymize for public sharing).

Reports

During the first half of the ICAT SEAD funding period, the team met together for approximately 65 hours, including 6 meetings, 6 data collection sessions that included 21 unique participants, 4 IDPro class presentations, and 3 public outreach events. 

Data collection 

Stone carvers from the New River Valley participated in stone carving workshops where data was collected in the form of EEG caps recording brain activity, aural recording, video recording, evaluative (survey) data on ways that people engage with the different art forms, and qualitative observational data. A protocol was developed that included setting a baseline through brief guided meditation, synchronized use of tools (Fig. 1), and setting intentions (by placing hands on stone and thinking about what they would work toward while carving).

Student experiential learning 

Graduate research assistants (Embodied brain lab) and Undergraduate research assistants (IDPro class) participated in the data collection, learning how to apply EEG caps and monitor recording of brain activity; setting up and monitoring aural recording devices; and abide by IRB human subjects requirements. The graduate students not only gained experience in data collection but also in mentoring undergraduates. The IDPro undergraduate team included 4 students with majors in neuroscience and computational modeling. They presented their work to peers and faculty coaches in a midterm review and in an end-of-semester poster session attended by peers, faculty coaches, Virginia Tech faculty and administrators, and industry professionals.

Public Outreach 

The project was introduced to the public at a gallery reception using a video display that ran for two weeks at the beginning of the Fall semester. It was shared as educational outreach at two events, the Roanoke STEAM Day and the Virginia Tech Science Festival.

In addition to engaging participants in the stone carving workshops, other community members attended the sessions to either carve or observe. The Virginia Tech team will continue to engage these stakeholders as we develop the research and creative installations.

Expand Student Experiential Learning 

Graduate research assistants (Embodied Brain Lab) and Undergraduate research assistants (IDPro class) will assist in post-production “cleaning” of the EEG data and learn methods of aural and visual data analysis and presentation. The IDPro program is currently recruiting undergraduate students with skills in data visualization, neuroscience, and affinity for artistic expression. 

Expand Public Outreach 

Additional educational outreach is planned for a Hokie for a Day field trip for fifth graders from Title I schools; for high school students and university community members at ICAT Day; and a presentation at the ICAT SEAD Grants Pecha Kucha event. The culmination of the project will be an immersive “Communicating Across Distances” Installation simultaneously presented at the grand opening of the Innovation Campus building in Alexandria, The Cube at Virginia Tech’s Blacksburg campus, and the Taubman Museum in Roanoke, VA.

Impact

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