Monday – Saturday
March 4th – 9th
Creative & Associate Programme
Dominic Campbell curator of Creative Brain Week writes:
Creative Brain Week connects across disciplines, contexts, and cultures. It values richness and abundance in the diverse ways people understand and engage with the world.
Its curatorial approach to Exhibitions and Associate Programme reflects this. To the phrases “nothing about us without us”and “each one teach one” we added “no tell without a show” to remind us that words, the traditional transactional language of exchange of Universities, have to be matched by sense-based learning, experiential encounter, movement and playfulness. This informs our use of the exhibition spaces.
Living Labs daily at 12.15pm invited participants to explore creativity as knowledge-making practice while a week-long exhibition reflected the vibrancy of national and international creative work.
The exhibition and Living Labs were FREE. Usually no booking was required but some had limited capacity and needed booking as detailed below.
ASSOCIATE PROGRAMME
Associate Programme: Wednesday 6th March 7.30pm
The Tightrope Walker by Jenny Macdonald presented by SoloSIRENs
With humour and humility, The Tightrope Walker navigates a woman’s journey through the chaotic and profound territory of illness and recovery. It explores the grief inherent in a serious diagnosis, as well as the community and characters who share in the journey. It is a testament to the care and connection we may find in challenging times.
Wednesday evening’s performance was followed by a post-show discussion with artist, Maria Fleming of First Fortnight Festival and Phil Kingston of the Abbey Theatre. Chaired by Nicholas Johnson.
Supported by
Contributors
Jenny is a theatremaker and facilitator. Her first solo play “Enthroned” premiered at First Fortnight Festival 2016 and has since been programmed by festivals and venues in Ireland and internationally including the Civic, glor, Town Hall, Galway, and the New York International Fringe. She is writer in residence at the Irish Hospice Foundation and was a facilitator for their Compassionate Culture Network 2021-2022. She is an Associate Artist with the Abbey Theatre’s Community and Education department and works collaboratively with the Abbey and the Royal College of Physicians to create drama-based trainings for physicians.
In 2019, she founded SoloSIRENs to amplify female-identifying voices and to explore more just, caring and sustainable ways of making theatre and living our lives. With SoloSIRENs she has curated two festivals and two symposia on feminist aesthetics and care. With SoloSIRENs Collective, she has directed original, devised works including ‘Dear Ireland III’ (Abbey Theatre, 2020), ‘Cessair’ (Civic Theatre/TCA 2021) and ‘Careground’ (SoloSIRENs Festival, 2023).
She lectures in Socially Engaged Theatre at Trinity College, Dublin, is a tutor on the New York University Masters in Educational Theatre, and a regular guest lecturer in Arts & Health at Central School of Speech and Drama (London).
Website:
Social:
Facebook: @solosirens
X: @solosirens
Instagram: @macdjenny/ and @solosirens
Associate Programme: Thursday 7th - Monday 11th March
Disrupt Disability Arts Festival at Project Arts Centre
Disrupt Disability Arts Festival was a vibrant celebration of disability art, curated by and for the disability community.
Immerse yourself in a rich diversity of voices from the disability arts community. The festival line up includes theatre, dance, literature-based performance and visual arts, all delivered through a range of accessible engagement formats in relaxed spaces.
This unique festival is designed to deepen understanding and appreciation for the richness of experiences and perspectives that define disability in Ireland. Disrupt Disability Arts Festival actively dismantles barriers to artistic engagement faced by both artists and audiences with lived experience of disability.
Come on a journey that goes beyond the ordinary, transcends boundaries and reshapes narratives around disability and the arts.
Social Media:
Associate Programme: Friday 8th March 10.00am - 12.30pm
Neuroscience Meets Dance in Therapy
Venue: Online Only
Neuroscience Meets Dance in Therapy network organised by Prof Vicky Karkou, Edge Hill University and Dr Valentina Cazzato, Liverpool John Moores University.
With collaborators from Edge Hill University and Liverpool John Moores University and presenters from the University of Hertfordshire and City, University of London.
Research has shown that dance movement psychotherapy can be used for stress reduction, disease prevention, and mood management as well as, as a treatment tool across specific psychiatric conditions, including depression and anxiety.
The network aims to bring together neuroscientists, dancers, dance movement psychotherapists and other creative arts therapists, exploring joint research ideas, challenging methodological limitations and promoting future research activities.
The third workshop followed up from two prior online workshops, one titled ‘observing dance’ and the other on ‘dancing with another’ and will lead to a conference that will take place 7th June 2024 at Edge Hill University.
This third workshop focussed on ‘inner dance’, internal sensations and body awareness that may lead to movement and certainly can offer new information about one’s internal world including one’s feelings, needs and wants. During this final workshop, we clarified the brain mechanisms underlying the ability of dance in encouraging observation and tracking of internal phenomena through ‘kinaesthetic awareness’. It focussed on the neuro-cognitive processes underlying the reception and integration of signals from ‘inside the body’, for e.g., muscle tension, (interoceptive signals) and feeling of where the body is in space (proprioceptive signals).
Two leading scholars in dance neuroscience and dance movement psychotherapy talked about this topic from their respective perspectives:
Prof Helen Payne, University of Hertfordshire, pioneer and leading scholar in dance movement psychotherapy in the UK.
Dr Vasiliki Meletaki, Postdoctoral Research Scholar at Penn Center for Neuroaesthetics.
Contributors
Prof Valentina Cazzato is an Associate Professor in Cognitive Neuroscience at Liverpool John Moores University (UK) and University of Messina (Italy). She is a recognised expert in the psychological and neural bases of body knowledge in healthy populations and in individuals suffering from body image disturbances. By using brain imaging (fMRI) and non-invasive brain stimulation methods (TMS, tDCS), Valentina’s research aims at understanding how individual differences in body awareness, body image concerns and endorsement of cultural standards promoting thinness ideals in western societies might impact on people’ mental health.
She is the manager of the Body Image Lab and Co-Chair of the BRNet Society. She is an External Adviser for the Research Centre in Arts and Wellbeing (Edge Hill University, UK). Valentina serves as Associate Editor and peer reviewer for a range of psychology and neuroscience journals, as well as for UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) grant bids. She is a Fellow of the UK Higher Education Academy and Chartered Psychologist both in the UK and in Italy.
Valentina’s research is supported by external funding from The Royal Society and currently from the Arts Council, AHRC. Together with Prof Vicky Karkou, she leads the ‘Neuroscience meets Dance in Therapy’ Network which ultimately focuses on bridging the contemporary neuroscience of dance performance with therapeutic uses of the arts, and with creative forms of therapies.
Website:
Social Media:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/
Prof Vicky Karkou is the Director of the Research Centre for Arts and Wellbeing at Edge Hill University and an internationally known academic and researcher in the arts and arts psychotherapies. She has secured external funding of over £7million with successes from NIHR, ESRC, AHRC, the Arts Council, the Wellcome Trust and the European Union to name a few. Currently a Professor in the Faculty of Health, Social Care and Medicine, she leads on the research activities and the research agenda of the Faculty.
Vicky’s research work is diverse ranging from artistic inquiry to systematic reviews and meta-analyses. For example, she is a Cochrane Reviewer (two reviews, one on dementia and one on depression), she is involved in the largest arts therapies trial in the UK (the NIHR-funded study called ERA) and has recently secured funding for one the largest studies in the use of the arts to support the mental health of children and young people using a realist evaluation. Her co-designing work has secured funding from the Arts Council, AHRC and the clinical commissioning sources.
Part of Vicky’s international work involves collaboration with colleagues from around the world. For example, she has led the UK arm of a project funded by the European Union on dance for cancer care. She is also a core member of the International Arts Therapies Research Alliance, working on international commissioned projects from the WHO Arts and Health Office and a recipient of Wellcome Trust funding for a systematic review on helping professionals.
She is widely published in peer reviewed journals and chapters (over 100 publications) and edited books (5 books) and is co-editing the international journal Body, Movement and Dance in Psychotherapy published by Taylor and Francis.
Website:
https://research.edgehill.ac.uk/en/persons/vicky-karkou
Social Media:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vicky-vassiliki-karkou-b3918827/
X: @vkarkou, @artswellEHU
Edge Hill University’s mission is to explore the difference knowledge can make in inspiring minds and shaping a better future for our graduates and the lives of others.
We set out to deliver teaching of the highest standard, informed by research of true international standing, set in an intellectually stimulating, ideas-focused and inclusive environment.
From our community to the global community, we will ensure education has a wider reach and a genuinely transformative effect, changing lives and opening the door to greater possibilities for all.
Website:
Social Media:
X: @edgehill
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/edgehilluniversity
Associate Programme: Friday 8th March - 2pm
An Introduction to IMMA Horizons: Lifelong Creativity for the Curious at IMMA
Venue: Irish Museum of Modern Art
Creative Brain Week interactive programme closed out with a specially programmed visit to the Irish Museum of Modern Art. Participants joined curator Bairbre-Ann Harkin to learn about IMMA’s recently launched IMMA Horizons Programme. Their visit included an introduction to IMMA Horizons Lifelong Creativity for the Curious, as well as an in-gallery taster of IMMA’s Slow Art Sessions.
IMMA Horizons aims to contribute to new thinking on how creativity can positively impact health and wellbeing through programming and partnerships.
Extensive research has identified the role of the arts and creative engagement in the promotion of wellbeing across the life course. Building on the strong history of arts and health practice in Ireland, IMMA Horizons contributes to new research and ongoing conversations in Ireland and globally, advocating for arts experiences to be recognised as an important part of a healthy life.
IMMA Horizons provides free creative experiences and events for adults to meet and explore art together at a relaxed pace, in a sociable and supportive environment that encourages active participation by all.
Participants joined IMMA Horizons Curator, Bairbre-Ann Harkin, to learn how this programme was informed by IMMA’s work with people living with dementia.
Contributors
Bairbre-Ann Harkin is an art-educator with a particular interest in accessible programming, who facilitates art-looking tours, trainings and workshops for organisations nationally and internationally. Currently IMMA’s Art & Ageing Curator, Harkin formerly completed an internship at the Museum of Modern Art (New York), worked as Access Officer at Dublin Contemporary 2011 and spent six years as Butler Gallery’s Education Curator, where she established one of Ireland’s first dementia-inclusive art-looking programmes and developed and delivered arts education programmes for audiences of all ages and backgrounds. During this time, she became a founding partner of the European Project, ‘Museums, Art & Alzheimer’s’ and the national Azure Network, alongside the Alzheimer Society of Ireland, Age & Opportunity and IMMA.
Websites:
https://imma.ie/learn-engage/families-community/dementia-inclusive/
Social:
X: @IMMAIreland
EXHIBITION
The exhibition took place in the Science Gallery (Naughton Institute) from Monday 4th March to Saturday 11th March. 10am to 5pm daily.
Admission was free and no booking necessary.
Exhibition
1 in 6 by 2030
1 in 6 by 2030 is a global, collaborative project that brings together photographers from around the world to put a human face on one of the most important “statistics” of our time — the fact that by the year 2030, 1 in 6 people in the world will be over the age of 60.
Earth’s population is about to become the oldest it has ever been: by the year 2030, 1 in 6 people will be over the age of 60. In the seven years leading up to 2030, photographers around the world will show us what it looks like to live in this historic time.
This is a historic moment for the world — one filled with challenges and also huge potential — as individuals, societies and governments confront one of the most fundamental population shifts in human history. This seven-year-long project, which launched in Autumn 2023, features a series of photo essays that bring these issues to life from around the world.
Contributors
Exhibition
Less Visible Threads
“Less Visible Threads:” was dedicated to displaying stories of arts and health in Ireland. A gallery space with the aspiration of operating somewhere between a space for conversation and vibrant pop-up library that evolves over Creative Brain Week.
ArtsandHealth.ie and Creative Brain Week noted a sea change in attitudes to arts and health from government, funders and policy makers.
This is the result of decades of less visible practice. Often localised, driven by passionate individuals working away, sometimes quietly, long before it became so public. We celebrated these people and groups.
Alongside this is amazing ongoing creative practice. Work that makes hearts sing. Work that is exciting, surprising, considered, that tells new stories.
This exhibition featured content collected by ArtsAndHealth.ie. Create, Realta, and many others, gathered from artists, researchers, local authorities, peoples spare rooms, sheds, defunct hard drives and boxes under beds.
Now, before times change and it’s all gone and forgotten, this was a place for people to bring their stories.
Exhibition
The Lightkeeper by Zach Bandler
Set on a remote stretch of stormy coastline, a hardened young woman agrees to dinner at the home of an aging recluse.
Contributors
As a director, Zach’s work has won awards and played film festivals across the globe. His short film The Lightkeeper (2018) was named final recipient of the CINE Golden Eagle Award for Narrative Short Film, an award recognizing rising filmmakers since 1962 which has honored the early careers of Steven Spielberg, Ron Howard, Spike Lee, Taylor Hackford and others. It was also “Best of the Month” on Omeleto, YouTube’s largest short film channel with 3.5 million subscribers. His dark comedy film Torn (2019) premiered online with Directors Notes, and his mid-length short film The Stairs (2016) is a multi-award winner at festivals.
As a screenwriter, his first teleplay Hollywood and Vine (2012) was given an industry presentation at the American Film Institute, starring Jason Alexander (Seinfeld) and directed by Independent Spirit Award winner Mark Polish. His screenplays have been Finalists in the PAGE International Screenwriting Awards and Cinequest Screenwriting Competition and shortlisted for the ScreenCraft Film Fund.
Zach is a Global Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health, working to develop empathetic narratives at the intersection of film & television with dementia rights & destigmatization. His first film to emerge from this endeavor, Koko Suzanne, is a collaboration with Global Atlantic Fellow Emmanuel Epenge, and will shoot in the Democratic Republic of Congo in June 2024. His screenplay Altered, based on true events from the life of Global Brain Health Institute co-founder Dr. Bruce Miller, is a 2023 Finalist in the ScreenCraft Feature Competition and is currently being developed for production next year.
He is a Global Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health.
Websites:
https://www.gbhi.org/profiles/zach-bandler
Social Media:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/zachbandler/
https://www.instagram.com/zachbandler/
Exhibition
Home Sweet Home by Cheng Wei Yi - Video Installation
Home Sweet Home is an attempt to understand the effects of a disease associated with memory loss—Alzheimer’s Disease (AD). The work embodies the perspectives of an AD patient and his caretaker within their home and uses visual metaphors to express the effects of the condition with information collected from the patient, his caretaker and the artist’s research.
Contributors
Cheng Wei Yi is a digital artist who is driven to understand the basics of what makes us human. Born and raised in Malaysia and a migrant to Singapore, the uprooting of her childhood shaped her worldview, her identity, and her sensitivity to spaces for both the past and the present. With the rise of technology, she embraced the digital medium as her way to cope with the changes in her life through realistically rendered spaces and objects in her past.
Wei Yi graduated with a BA (Hons) in Fine Arts from LASALLE College of the Arts in Singapore in 2023 and her artworks have been featured in several exhibitions in 2023, including the LASALLE Show and the Winstedt Graduation Show: Terminus.
Website: https://joannachengwy.wixsite.com/mysite
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joannasartss/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJtdxYpUtKEEsagUlyiIaoA
Exhibition
Walking the talk for dementia. Video Installation
Walking the Talk for Dementia,” an immersive initiative aimed at empowering people with dementia, enhancing dementia understanding, and inspiring collaborations. This initiative involved 300 participants from 25 nationalities, including people with dementia, care partners, clinicians, policymakers, researchers, and advocates for a 4-day, 40 km walk through the Camino de Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
For more information please see:
https://alz-journals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/alz.13644
Contributors
Fernando Aguzzoli is a deeply passionate grandson who spent six years alongside his grandmother, diagnosed with dementia. During this period, Fernando decided to drop out of philosophy school and leave his job to embark on an adventure with his grandmother and best friend. Together, they created a social media profile to share the everyday moments of dementia from a positive angle, the first profile of its kind in Brazil. Following his grandmother’s passing, Fernando published his first book detailing their remarkable journey.
Fernando is a journalist, best-selling author of five books, two-time TEDx speaker, Global Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health at the Global Brain Health Institute (GBHI) Trinity College Dublin (TCD), Director of Institutional Development at the International Longevity Centre Brazil (ILC BR), and co-founder of Walking the Talk for Dementia, an immersive multi-stakeholder experience aimed at reshaping our individual and collective approaches to dementia.
Websites:
https://www.gbhi.org/profiles/
Exhibition
UnRavelled by Jake Broder - Video Installation
Based on the fascinating real life connection between the modern day scientist Dr. Anne Adams and world famous composer Maurice Ravel, UnRavelled is an essential new play about love, art, science and who we are on the most profound level.
This video installation gave an overview of the play itself and the writer Jake Broder.
Credits for the UnRavelled Video
Created & Written by Jake Broder
Arrangement of Ravel’s Bolero by Simon Parkin
Director – James Bonas
Conductor – Curt Pajer
Video Designer – Adam Larsen
Sound Designer – Jeff Gardner
Interstitial Musical Arrangements – Mark Grey
Dramaturg – Nike Doukas
Anne Adams – Lucy Davenport
Robert Adams – Rob Nagle
Maurice Ravel – Conor Duffy
Dr. Miller – Leo Marks
Ida Rubenstein / Carol – Melissa Greenspan
Producer – Cath Brittan
Stage Manager – Pat Loeb
Contributors
Jake Broder lives in Los Angeles with his wife Lucy and children Ella & Louis. He is currently an Atlantic Fellow at the Global Brain Health Institute (at UCSF and Trinity College, Dublin), who commissioned his play UnRavelled.
His play Our American Hamlet premiered at the Commonwealth Shakespeare Company, and was nominated for best new play, IRNE (Boston).
His musical, Miravel, won the LADCC for best score, composed by Jake. He co-wrote and originated the role of Louis in Louis & Keely Live at the Sahara, winning Jake Ovation, LADCC, Garland and LA Weekly awards for Best Actor and Best Musical. It ran at the Geffen Playhouse, directed by Oscar-winner, Taylor Hackford, and since toured Chicago and SoCal. His Royal Hipness Lord Buckley played Off-West End (Soho Theatre) and Off-Broadway (59e59) and in LA.
Jake’s TV Writing includes Typewriter Days (Revolution Studios) and Black Hole Sun (Echo Lake). He was also a fellow at the O’Neill under artistic director John McDaniel.
As an actor, Jake recently shot The Patient, with Steve Carrell, was on The Morning Show on Apple TV+. and has a recurring role on HBO’s Silicon Valley. Broadway/West End includes: Mozart in Amadeus directed by Sir Peter Hall (Old Vic, Music Box, Ahmanson), When Harry Met Sally with Alyson Hannigan and Luke Perry (Theatre Royal Haymarket), and Ophelia & Juliet in the Reduced Shakespeare Company’s Complete Works of Shakespeare (Criterion) in London. He played Ira Gershwin in Words By: Ira Gershwin (Colony Theatre) and Einstein in Einstein Comes Through (North Coast Rep), both directed by David Ellenstein.
He received his BA from Tufts University and trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London.
Jake’s new play Sense of Decency (adapted from Jack El-Hai’s The Nazi & Psychiatrist) opens in San Diego at North Coast Rep in April 2024.
Websites:
https://www.gbhi.org/profiles/jake-broder
https://www.gbhi.org/unravelled
Social:
Instagram: @JakeBroderUS/
X: @Jakebroder
LIVING LABS
The Living Labs took place at 12.15 to 1pm in the Science Gallery (Naughton Institute).
All Living Lab events were free and no booking necessary.
Living Labs - Tuesday and Thursday in Science Gallery (Naughton Institute), Friday in IMMA
Slow Art Experience
Participants joined Irish Museum of Modern Art Curator Bairbre-Ann Harkin to experience a taste of IMMA’s Slow Art Sessions. This Lab explored how slowing down to engage with an artwork encourages us to be present and opens us up to different perspectives.
Bairbre-Ann discussed how what IMMA has learned from working with people living with dementia and how this has informed the IMMA Horizons programme. IMMA Horizons Lifelong Creativity for the Curious aims to contribute to new thinking on how creativity can positively impact health and wellbeing through programming and partnerships.
Contributors
Bairbre-Ann Harkin is an art-educator with a particular interest in accessible programming, who facilitates art-looking tours, trainings and workshops for organisations nationally and internationally. Currently IMMA’s Art & Ageing Curator, Harkin formerly completed an internship at the Museum of Modern Art (New York), worked as Access Officer at Dublin Contemporary 2011 and spent six years as Butler Gallery’s Education Curator, where she established one of Ireland’s first dementia-inclusive art-looking programmes and developed and delivered arts education programmes for audiences of all ages and backgrounds. During this time, she became a founding partner of the European Project, ‘Museums, Art & Alzheimer’s’ and the national Azure Network, alongside the Alzheimer Society of Ireland, Age & Opportunity and IMMA.
Websites:
https://imma.ie/learn-engage/families-community/dementia-inclusive/
Social:
X: @IMMAIreland
Living Labs - Tuesday to Thursday Inclusive
Music as Sense Making
As a professional musician with expertise in musical note, pitch, tone, rhythm, melody and frequency Mike’s long been aware of music’s ability to calm or stimulate. Newly informed by neuroscience he wondered how it can articulate the life of someone living with a diagnosis of dementia. If music reflects the first senses to form, can if reflect them as they change? This Living Lab was a practical journey in music and sound.
Contributors
It was 1977, Ennis and Doolin were alive with new music. He was in a room on the top floor of a house in Abbey Street creating a new sound with Maura O Connell. They were Tumbleweed. Stocktons Wing were creating a movement down the road on O Connell Street. It was exciting. Maura went to Nashville, he jumped on The Wing Wave ……. It has been a rollercoaster.
As an Atlantic Fellow at the Global Brain Health Institute at Trinity College he has been learning about Dementia and ways he can contribute as an artist to promote equity and care for brain health.
Websites:
https://www.gbhi.org/profiles/mike-hanrahan
Social Media:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-hanrahan-66780946/
Instagram: @mikehanrahanmusic/
Living Labs - Tuesday to Thursday Inclusive
Neuroscience at Noon
Global Brain Health Institute Cohort hosted guests and conversations exploring the themes of the day by weaving diverse disciplines and experience.
Tuesday’s session was led by Rob Whelan.
Wednesday’s session was led by the schools involved in My Brain Robbie
Thursday’s session was led by Elul Lakew, Laz Eze and Luis Martinez.
Contributors
Laz Ude Eze is a public health physician, health policy and management specialist and sustainable development consultant with over 15 years working experience in the health sector. He’s the Founder/CEO of TalkHealth9ja – a leading health communications and public health information management firm that partners with the Government of Nigeria and other organisations in increasing health literacy, influencing appropriate health seeking behaviours and health systems strengthening. Laz’s interest in brain health was inspired by the cognitive impairment his dad experienced before his demise. He is currently an Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health and Co-founder of the Sub-Saharan Africa Brain Health Initiative (SSABHI). He is collaborating with other Fellows to develop a movie project that can help in the understanding of brain health in Africa.
Before now, Laz has worked with national and international institutions in Nigeria, contributing to health reforms, policy development and implementation of health projects on malaria elimination, HIV/AIDS, immunisation, promotion of sexual reproductive health and rights, family planning, and cancer control. During the COVID19 lockdown, he founded the MakeOurHospitalWork Campaign through which he mobilised over 1000 volunteers leading changes in their communities. He also participates actively in health systems research and helping to shape health policies in the West Africa sub-region. Outside the health sector, he is also in the business of leveraging technology to promote creativity and innovation among young people.
Laz had an outstanding academic background having graduated with the Medical Students’ Prize at the University of Ibadan College of Medicine, Nigeria, and John Wiggs Prize for ‘exceeding expectations of his Masters degree program’ at the University of Kentucky College of Public Health. He’s a member of the Omicron Delta Kappa (ODK) National Leadership Honours Society and has received over twenty awards/recognitions in recognition of his leadership and professional accomplishments.
He is currently an Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health at the Global Brain Health Institute.
Website:
https://www.gbhi.org/profiles/laz-eze
Social Media:
X: @donlaz4u
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/donlaz4u/
Elul is a clinical psychologist and mental health advocate. She sets up and hosts radio and television programs on the issue of mental health. She also utilizes social media platforms to discuss brain health. She is currently an Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health at the Global Brain Health Institute.
Website:
https://www.gbhi.org/profiles/elul-lakew
Social Media:
X: @ElulDereje
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elul-dereje-a409941b0/
Luis’ primary purpose is to administer sound clinical judgments and treatment to patients as well as to fellow health professionals seeking his counsel. As a Neurologist, Luis aims to be as accurate as possible in diagnosing neurological disorders via thorough conduct of procedures and in collaboration with other health specialists. One of his objectives is to conduct clinical trials to expand the knowledge base concerning Alzheimer ́s disease and the lesser-known neurological disorders. It is also his goal to develop individualized treatment plans and monitor patients’ progress thoroughly to ensure optimal healthcare delivery.
Websites:
https://luismartinezroman.com/
https://luchomartinezroman6.wixsite.com/neurologo
https://www.gbhi.org/profiles/luis-martinez
Social Media:
X: @drluismartinezr
Instagram: @drluismartinez/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/luis-eduardo-martinez-roman-5504531a5/
Rob Whelan was awarded a first-class honours undergraduate degree in Applied Psychology in 2001 from University College Cork, followed by a PhD in psychology in 2004 from National University of Ireland Maynooth. He subsequently obtained a wide range of post-doctoral experience – in psychiatry, neurology, and neural engineering – at University College Dublin, Trinity College Dublin and the University of Vermont. He was appointed as Lecturer in the School of Psychology at University College Dublin in mid-2013. In mid-2016 was appointed as Associate Professor in the School of Psychology at Trinity College Dublin and the Global Brain Health Institute.
Websites:
https://psychology.tcd.ie/people/whelanr3
https://www.gbhi.org/profiles/rob-whelan
Social:
Living Labs - Tuesday to Thursday Inclusive
This Is What Love Feels Like?
Trudy Meehan, Lecturer in Positive Health Science, invited participants to explore art based research and practice by supporting participants to make body maps of their experiences of love and care in, on and across our bodies
Contributors
Dr Trudy Meehan is a Chartered Clinical Psychologist with over two decades of experience. Her career spans various life stages, from therapeutic work in Child and Adolescent Mental Health to neuropsychological assessments of older adults.
Currently, as a Lecturer and Director of the Professional Diploma in Positive Health with the RCSI Centre for Positive Health Sciences, Trudy is shaping the future of positive health practices. She is supervising doctoral candidates, fostering the next generation of thought leaders in the application of the arts for health and wellbeing.
Trudy’s innovative approach to research and practice, intertwines the arts with health, and wellbeing, underscoring the transformative power of experiential engagement. Currently delving into the nuances of positive emotions, her research offers fresh perspectives on harnessing our senses to enhance vitality and promote sustained purpose and interconnection. She has made scholarly contributions to the field of clinical formulation and diagnosis in mental health. Trudy has also published on topics such as, tools for positive health, the role of positive emotions, purpose and meaning, and the essential nature of play.
Her tenure as Director of Stanford University’s Overseas Study Programme in Cape Town was marked by her ability to weave connections across continents, integrating academic rigor with real-world applications through partnerships with NGOs, hospitals, and corporations. Her passion for asking the right questions, challenging the boundaries between art and science, and forging collaborative paths is a testament to her commitment to excellence in the field of arts and health.
She is a visual artist and creative writer who has curated and exhibited visual art at the National Arts Festival, Grahamstown, South Africa. She led an art studio and research project in collaboration with the late Mark Hipper from the School of Fine Art at Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa. She has collaborated with the Drama Department at Rhodes University in co-creating a performance about trauma and community for the National Arts Festival. She has also trained in Forum Theatre with Julian Boal and continue to develop her work in this area.
Website:
https://www.rcsi.com/people/profile/trudymeehan
Social:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/trudy-meehan-phd-a1762b47/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/trudymeehan/
Living Labs - Tuesday to Thursday Inclusive
Breaks and Joins
Sue Mayo, Artist and a facilitator lead “Breaks and Joins” – a creative daily session at Creative Brain Week informed by her work on the repair of our stuff, ourselves and our communities.
Each day we played with that day’s theme through words, paint, clay and glue, and wonder whether everything can be mended.
Contributors
Sue Mayo is a freelance creative artist and researcher, with a specialism in community based and intergenerational co-creation. Sue has worked with many arts organisations, including the Royal Court, The Young Vic, Magic Me, Tamasha, People United, The Lyric Theatre Belfast, Bealtaine, The Royal Albert Hall, Bristol Old Vic. Her own research-led creative projects include The Gratitude Enquiry, and Breaks & Joins, a project exploring the repair of our stuff, our selves and our communities. Her podcast, Breaks & Joins is now into its 5th series. Sue led the MA in Applied Theatre at Goldsmiths, University of London, from 2012-2022.
Website:
Social:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sue-mayo-2714b116/?originalSubdomain=uk and https://linktr.ee/breaksandjoins
X: @sue_mayo
Instagram: www.instagram.com/breaks_and_joins
Living Labs - Wednesday
Marshmallow Laser Feast
This was an opportunity to experience the work of MLF which reinterprets the idea of human perception and experience.
Contributors
Barnaby Steel is an artist and creative director of London based studio Marshmallow Laser Feast, an experiential art collective, their work reinterprets the idea of human perception and experience. Employing a wealth of creative disciplines and underpinned by research, inviting participants to navigate with a sensory perception beyond the everyday.
This experiential art collective works in the liminal space between art, technology and the natural world.Their expertise has earned them a reputation for creating transformative experiences, expanding the senses, reinvigorating a sense of wonder and deepening audiences connection to the more than human world. Barnaby’s art practice combines a wide range of disciplines including sculpture, installation, live performance, and mixed reality. His work illuminates the hidden natural forces that surround us, inviting participants to navigate with a sensory perception beyond their daily experience.
Website:
https://marshmallowlaserfeast.com
Social:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/barneysteel
Marshmallow Laser Feast (MLF) is an experiential art collective, their work reinterprets the idea of human perception and experience. Employing a wealth of creative disciplines and underpinned by research, inviting participants to navigate with a sensory perception beyond the everyday.
Website:
https://marshmallowlaserfeast.com/
Social Media:
Instagram: @marshmallowlaserfeast/
Facebook: @marshmallowlaserfeast
Living Labs - Wednesday
My Brain Robbie
The My Brain Robbie team worked with Dublin schools who presented their learnings through performance, song, video and visual art.
Contributors
A dual background in Neurosciences and Economics.
- Medical doctor with an expertise in neurology (Traumatic Brain Injury), in rehabilitation of cognitive-behavioral disorders and in the management of complex disability situations.
- Research on syndemic & synergistic patterns of social-economic and medical handicap (and associated formal and informal costs); research on the impact of multimorbidity in the process of loss of autonomy, including prediction-prevention of disability and of acquired vulnerability according to the ICF – WHO approach; identification of likelihood of dementia in population-based surveys. Author of >70 scientific articles.
- Implementation science to increase awareness in the domain of Brain Health and disability among children and the global public : https://mybrainrobbie.org
Website:
https://www.gbhi.org/profiles/eleonore-bayen
Social:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eléonore-bayen
Facebook: www.facebook.com/MyBrainRobbie
Living Labs - Friday 12pm to 1pm - At the Trinity DisAbility Hub
The Creative Gym
Where many of us go to a gym to engage in physical activity, this workshop explored how creative activity can also be experienced in such a manner and introduced as part of a lifestyle which supports lifelong health and wellbeing.
Participants were invited to join Clodagh Galvin and the Trinity DisAbility Hub in an introduction to the Creative Gym, an inclusive space which endeavours to allow individuals to access engagement in regular and varied creative activities.
This Living Lab intertwined research of neuroplasticity, community-based arts for wellbeing and the use of the Arts for interpreting and expressing individual narratives of disability.
Directions to DisAbility Hub Video: https://www.youtube.com/
Contributors
Clodagh is the Outreach Disability Officer in Trinity DisAbility Hub. She works with students across multiple campuses including Marino Institute of Education, Lir Academy, The Royal Irish Academy of Music and St. James’.
Clodagh is from Co. Cork. She has graduated with a Bachelor of Education degree and MSc Psychology and has worked as a primary teacher for six years. She has worked with students of a diversity of needs and has engaged in the process of early intervention towards supporting developing needs at the earliest points of presenting features of disability. She has a strong interest in human behaviour, its influences and in the research and application of positive psychology, behavioural neuroscience and lifestyle medicine to support students in an individualised manner using integrated approaches.
After completing a Masters in Psychology and conducting research in ‘Creative Activity Engagement and Cognitive Reserve’, Clodagh began working in Trinity Disability Service as an Assistant Psychologist. She enjoyed working with students of a variety of ages, stages and disabilities to support their greatest academic and holistic needs throughout their time in university.
During this time, Clodagh completed a Diploma in Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, training in Schema Therapy, Epilepsy and ASSIST Training . She is a member of Psychological Society of Ireland and British Psychological Society, Creativity Research Network, The Association of Drama in Education and the Global Brain Health Institute.
Clodagh enjoys working with Barretstown and Children in Hospital Ireland in her free time along with musical theatre and athletics.
