Fear Itself

The Amygdala is located in the center of the brain and plays the key part in the reactions of unpleasant things and experiencing emotions, like fear. I've always been inspired by deep emotions and how we control it, so I thought this would be something I would be into. The actual amygdala is a set of almond shaped mass of nuclei located above the hypothalamus.

When I saw photos of the amygdala, they were attached to the hippocampus, which controls memory, especially long-term memory. In order for me to construct the amygdala, I have to include the hippocampus. Luckily, both parts compliment each other in the action I will do.

The action is pretty simple, but the most obvious conclusion I can think of is to use the set of amygdala and hippocampus as a picture frame and frame a photo onto the sculpture. We essentially use photographs to take place of memories and I thought the amygdala and hippocampus is a perfect pair in creating a photo frame of emotions.

I wanted to recreate this pair in a whimsical sense and I was inspired by the artist, whom I forgot the name, that used string and yarn. The amygdala controls many functions in the brain, ranging from emotion, arousal, and the sense of unpleasant things. I will focus the actual sculpture on the emotion of fear and depression, so the overall color scheme of the yarn will be somber colors, encompassed around a styrofoam ball. The hippocampus will be formed by a mass of thin wire, stuck from the styrofoam ball and bent to create the outline. I will then stick cotton around the wire to bring out a dream like effect.

Materials:

yarn in dark colors- black, grey, muted yellow

styrofoam balls

wire

cotton

fabric glue

scissors

measuring tape

a photograph

-I have most of the materials, but a quick trip to Joann's Fabrics & Michaels will be needed.

Any suggestions/comments are appreciated!

-Charlene