OBJECTIONS TO THE POSSIBILITY OF UNDERSTANDING
OUR MENTAL LIFE
11-06-’21 till 14-07-’21
FEDERICA FRANCESCONI | OBJECTIONS TO THE POSSIBILITY OF UNDERSTANDING OUR MENTAL LIFE
INDEBT is pleased to present Italian artist Federica Francesconi’s first exhibition in the Netherlands, Objections to the Possibility of Understanding our Mental Life. A body of work that creates a dialogue between the object itself and its surroundings.
One of the most fascinating recent advances in neuroscience concerns the functioning of our visual system: how do we see? How do we know from a glance that there is a book or a cat in front of us? Recent breakthroughs in neuroscience have revealed a captivating insight into our visual system's functioning. Contrary to the common belief of information flowing from our eyes to the brain, it's the brain that largely shapes what we see. The brain anticipates what we expect to see based on past experiences and knowledge, creating an internal image projected onto our environment. Only when disparities arise between this expected image and incoming light do neural signals travel from the eyes to the brain.
Francesconi's artistic oeuvre, characterized by almost abstract paintings employing trompe l'oeil techniques, delves into the intricate interplay of shadows and light. In exploring the mysteries of our visual system, her artworks seamlessly mirror the discoveries in neuroscience. Her pieces prompt a reexamination of perception and cognition by echoing the brain's anticipatory process in her use of shadows and light. Much like the brain constructs an internal image based on expectations, her paintings play with the viewers' preconceived notions, engaging them in a dance between anticipated visuals and actual observed details.
Federica Francesconi (1994 IT) lives and works between Milano and Brescia. Her practice centres around a neuroscientific perspective of vision and perception, simplifying complex scientific explanations and conveying the complexity in abstract forms and shapes.
Federica Francesconi, Untitled, 50 x 40 cm, Oil on canvas, 2020
Untitled, 50 x 40 cm, Oil on canvas, 2020
Untitled, 50 x 40 cm, Oil on canvas, 2020
Federica Francesconi, Untitled, 50 x 40 cm, Oil on canvas, 2020