Last week, the Penn Memory Center celebrated the kick-off of the Arts on the Mind festival, a series of events highlighting the profound connection between the creative arts and the human mind. This collaboration unites the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, Penn Memory Center, The Franklin Institute, Philadelphia Film Society, the Free Library, and ARTZ Philadelphia, bringing events to iconic venues. Together, artists, educators, physicians, and neuroscientists connect to create, observe, and discuss art in ways that illuminate its vital role in the development and maintenance of our minds, particularly as we age.
Last Week: The Franklin Institute’s Conversation Lab
On March 13, the festival partnered with the Franklin Institute for a special Conversation Lab on Music, Memory and Your Mind. This interactive session featured Chief Bioscientist Jayatri Das, PhD, TimeSlips founder and MacArthur Fellow Anne Basting, PhD, and PMC Co-Director Jason Karlawish. Participants were treated to a unique blend of art and science, starting with a tour of the Your Brain exhibit and a performance by cellist Zachary Mowitz.
The highlight was an engaging discussion on how creativity nurtures the brain and fosters community, embodying the series’ commitment to making science accessible and relevant to all.
Coming next month: Further details on the Arts on the Mind website
Expressing Our Minds: A Sampler of Interactive ARTZ Engagements
Time: 2 p.m. Monday, April 15
Location: Woodmere Art Museum, 9201 Germantown Ave, Philadelphia
Details: Susan Shifrin and ARTZ Philadelphia invite guests of all cognitive abilities to a collective of creative experiences at Woodmere Art Museum. Join in on interactive sessions celebrating music, poetry, painting, and conversation.
Wisdom Gone Wild
Time: 4 p.m. Sunday, April 21
Location: Philadelphia Film Center, 1412 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia
Details: A vibrant tender cine-poem; a filmmaker collaborates with her Nisei mother as they confront the painful curious reality of wisdom ‘gone wild’ in the shadows of dementia. Made over 16 years, the film blends humor and sadness in an encounter between mother and daughter that blooms into an affectionate portrait of love, care and a relationship transformed. The screening will be followed by a Q+A with the film’s director, Rea Tajiri, and Dr. Jason Karlawish from the Penn Memory Center and a reception in the Philadelphia Film Center lobby.
Dasha Kiper | Travelers to Unimaginable Lands: Stories of Dementia, the Caregivers, and the Human Brain, in conversation with Dr. Jason Karlawish
Time: 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 30
Location: The Free Library, 1901 Vine Street, Philadelphia
Details: The clinical consulting director of support groups at The CaringKind (formerly The Alzheimer’s Association), Dasha Kiper has an MA in clinical psychology from Columbia University. For the past decade she has worked with dementia patients, counseled caregivers, led support groups, trained and supervised mental health professionals, and counseled former caregivers who now lead support groups. Informed by her work as both a counselor and work as a caregiver herself, Travelers to Unimaginable Lands employs a wide range of compassionate stories to combat the myth of the so-called perfect caregiver.
These “moving and often surprising” (The Wall Street Journal) case histories meld science and storytelling to show that caregivers don’t just witness cognitive decline in their loved ones with dementia—they are its invisible victims. A book signing will follow the presentation.