July University of Galway exhibition focuses on mental health

A new exhibition at University of Galway will focus on the topic of mental health and the nature of expressing mental health issues from an artistic perspective with each piece being grounded in contemporary academic research.

Mindscapes will take place from July 12 to August 2 and is a unique exhibition resulting from collaborations between Arts and Sciences. 

Taking mental health as its central theme, Mindscapes features artworks from 10 artists in collaboration with 14 academic researchers from the Universities of Galway, Oxford, Edinburgh, Birmingham, and London.

Each artist chose a mental health topic and then was paired up with an academic who conducts research in that specific area. Topics include wellbeing, bipolar disorder, sleep, illusions, and emotions.

Mindscapes is the first project from the Scientific Arts Lab at the University of Galway and directed by Dr Jane Conway. Dr Conway is a fellow funded by the Irish Research Council through the SFI-IRC Pathway Programme and a Research Lecturer with the School of Psychology at University of Galway

            Dr Conway said: “This exhibition is testament to the strength of Galway’s cultural community. It demonstrates that people from the arts and sciences can come together to create original pieces that express the nature of the mind. In keeping with the aims of the Scientific Arts Lab, it explores ideas through artistic media but with respect to the research that iteratively builds those very ideas, and values the necessary critical reflection on the evidence, thinking about ‘how we know what we know’.” 

The free exhibition will run from 10am to 6pm from July 12 to August 2 in the University’s Art Gallery in the Quadrangle. The exhibition will be officially opened on Saturday July 15 at 3pm by James Harrold, former Galway City and County Arts Officer.

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