Event 1 Blog -- Marta De Menezes LunchTalk

On April 26, I attended the Lunchtime Talk Event and got to hear from artist Marta de Menezes. De Menezes emphasizes the importance of and encourages the collaboration of artists and scientists. We got to hear about her two organizations Cultivamos Cultura and Ectopia, which help put on events and symposiums to explore the possibilities that intersectional fields of study can bring about. (Cultivamos Cultura 2023).  

Group photo of all attendees with Marta de Menezes


Within these different sessions/events they host, they invite one scientist and one artist to discuss how their respective fields/knowledge are applicable to a specific topic. Through this method, Cultivamos Cultura is able to create the platform to raise awareness and realization for people that the interrelation of different fields of study are not in fact that different. This prompts people to think about how when working together, different fields of study can expand on their knowledge. 


One thing in particular that she mentioned was that “art is an immune system of knowledge”. She references her husband’s take on how the immune system is the most creative organ in the body. I found this to be interesting as many people often do not describe healthcare in a creative manner; or vice versa. However, as seen with the evolution of how the human body is depicted in educational diagrams over time, such as through the book Gray’s Anatomy, the two ideas of creativity and healthcare go hand in hand (Vesna 4:42). 


A classmate, Cindy, and I attending the event


De Menezes also explained how different methodologies, mediums, and ideas can be explored and spoke about a work she collaborated with her husband on – Immortality for Two (Casini 2011). This work centered around working with their immune cells to become “lifelong partners”. However, de Menezes discusses the irony of this project as although she and her husband choose to be lifelong partners, their cancer-inducing immune cells must remain separated. Their work was created through the combination of her expertise in the arts and her husband’s expertise in the medical field. With the combination of the two fields, they were able to create a visual of deep meaning for individuals to view. 


Image of De Menezes’ Slide Deck as she spoke about “Immortality for Two”

This was an interesting event that I would recommend to others to attend if you get the chance to! I was grateful to be able to attend and hear from Marta; especially since she is constantly traveling and speaking to different universities and working across countries!

References

Casini, Silvia. “Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) as Mirror and Portrait: MRI Configurations between Science and the Arts.” Configurations, vol. 19, no. 1, 2011, pp. 73–99., https://doi.org/10.1353/con.2011.0008.  

“Exhibitions.” Cultivamos Cultura, 2023, https://cultivamoscultura.com/category/exhibitions/.

Vesna, Victoria. “Human Body & Medical Technologies” BruinLearn, UC Online, https://bruinlearn.ucla.edu/courses/160989/pages/unit-4-view?module_item_id=5946331. 

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