Your Brain on Art: Reimagining the Gregg Museum Collection

John Meitzen, Ph.D., is a neuroscientist who serves as an Alumni Distinguished Undergraduate Professor and University Faculty Scholar at NCSU. He grew up in coastal Texas and was a Dean’s Honored Graduate for Research, Academics and Service from the U. of Texas at Austin in 2002, where he received a dual B.A. in Biology and Plan II Honors.  Before joining NCSU in 2013 he earned a Ph.D. from the U. of Washington, worked as a postdoctoral fellow at the U. of Minnesota and as a Grass Fellow at the Marine Biological Laboratory.

Tori Ralston studied Psychology and Fine Arts at UNC-CH, later working as atherapeutic arts specialist and arts educator. Ralston has been teaching interdisciplinary arts and design at NC State University since 2011. In addition to her teaching, she has actively exhibited her two-dimensional work, mixed media installations, and object performances at a number of venues including Walker Art Center, Lincoln Center, The New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York, The Minneapolis Art Institute, The CAM Raleigh, Hanes Art Center at UNC Chapel Hill, Meredith College, The Gregg Museum of Art and Design, Man Bites Dog Theater in Durham, Duke University Theater, Yale University.

In keeping with her education and work experience in psychology and visual arts, her research is informed by an investigation into personal identity and story, presented as interdisciplinary, interactive work. Formally trained in two and three-dimensional art, including design, painting, ceramics, technical theater, sculpture, and puppetry, Ralston is interested in finding engaging ways to present the quirky and strange aspects of the human condition through visual narrative. Specifically, she has been interested in the areas of brain research and neural pruning, sensory misperception, and stories of themissing and insane. Ralston works with a variety of materials and processes such as 3-d printing, carving, molding and casting, electronics, fibers processes, wax encaustic, layered text, and the sonic to envision the work, which takes the form of material performance, installation art, experimental filmmaking, mixed media paintings, and stop motion animation.

Dr. Valeria López Torres is an Assistant Professor of Graphic & Experience Design at NC State University’s College of Design. She specializes in human-AI interaction, experience design, and UX/UI. Her research incorporates interdisciplinary perspectives to understand how design and technology shape our lived experiences. She’s particularly interested in how AI can enhance human creativity and collaboration, and how people form relationships and affective bonds with technology. Her work has examined long-term AI companionship, AI-aided decision-making, and incorporating more-than-human perspectives in design education to promote critical, reflective, and empathetic design practices.

John Godwin was born in California and grew up in lots of places including Calgary, Canada.  He attended the University of Calgary, then moved for Hawai’i for graduate work and Austin for postdoctoral studies before joining the NCSU faculty in 1996. His research interests include temperature effects on sex determination in fishes and particularly the influence of hormones on the brain and behavior.  For fun, he enjoys hiking, paddleboarding, travel, and trying to keep up with his energetic dog.

Dr. Alper Bozkurt currently serves as the McPherson Family Distinguished Professor in Engineering Entrepreneurship in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at NC State University. He received a doctorate in electrical engineering from Cornell University and a master’s degree in biomedical engineering from Drexel University. He is the founder and Director of the Integrated Bionic MicroSystems (iBionicS) Laboratory, the Co-Director of the National Science Foundation Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Advanced Self-Powered Systems of Integrated Sensors and Technologies (ASSIST) and the co-founder and Co-Director of the Institute of Connected Sensor Systems (IConS) at NC State University.  His research interests include development of microscale sensors, systems and methodologies to unlock the mysteries of biological systems with an aim of engineering these systems directly or developing new engineering approaches by learning from these systems, where his research achievements on the Internet of Bionic Things have been covered by several media agencies, including BBC, CNN, National Geographic, Discovery Channel, Science Channel, Newsweek, and Reuters. Bozkurt is a recipient of the Donald Kerr Award at Cornell University, the Chancellor’s Innovation Award (three times), the Outstanding Global Engagement Award, and the William F. Lane Outstanding Teacher Award at NC State University, several IBM Faculty Awards, the Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award from the National Science Foundation and the IEEE Sensors Council Young Professional Award in addition to being included in Popular Science Magazine’s “Brilliant 10” list in 2015.

Gavin Bell is an artist and scholar practitioner from Durham, North Carolina.  As a member of the Lumbee Tribe, the largest tribe east of the Mississippi river, Gavin holds strong ties to his native community. Upon his graduation from UNC Chapel Hill in 2017, Gavin’s professional journey has revolved around education at both the K-12 and university levels.  Gavin has held a variety of different professional capacities in areas such as advising, university housing, campus programming, and many more.  His current role is at NC State University, as an Assistant Director in Multicultural Student Affairs, where he is also pursuing his Ph.D.  Through his engagement with a diverse array of campus populations, Gavin recognizes the importance of holistic well-being on student and staff populations alike. This focus, along with uplifting his Native community, are focal pieces of Gavin’s artwork, which he utilizes as a supplement to his student support and empowerment.