Me, My Brain and I: artists create brain sculptures for Parkinson’s UK

Alex Echo, Tremor, 2021. Enamel based paints on moulded resin and built-in motor

(Image credit: Luke Jackson-Clark)

Established and emerging international artists have joined forces for ‘Me, My Brain and I’, a new exhibition of brain sculptures to be exhibited and auctioned in aid of Parkinson’s UK, supported by The Auction Collective and Christie's.

The ‘Me, My Brain and I’ show will run at Koppel X in Piccadilly Circus from 28-30 October and will be the first time the sculptures are shown publicly after some debuted at The Other Art Fair in 2021.

Tracey Emin Brain Sculpture — Tracey Emin, *You fuck my brains out every time*, 2021. Acrylic paint on cast resin brain

Featured artists include Rob and Nick Carter, Tracey Emin, Abigail Fallis, Conrad Shawcross, Gavin Turk, LUAP and Nick Veasey. The design of the life-size brain sculpture was initially conceived by theatrical effects artist Schoony, who created fabricated brains as a blank canvas for participating artists; they were asked to consider what their brain means to them and create an original artwork in response.

Alex Echo, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in early 2020, is also among the featured artists. ‘I hope my brain sculpture, Tremor, will create a visual representation of what it's like to live with Parkinson's. It's been difficult, but when I'm doing art, time disappears. Parkinson's disappears. Worries disappear. Art saves my life every day and has for 42 years,’ he says.

D*Face, Brain Freeze, 2021. — D*Face, *Brain Freeze*, 2021. Acrylic and enamel-based paints on cast resin brain and wood

The brain sculptures will be auctioned on 14 December 2022 at Christie’s London and will also be live-streamed via The Auction Collective, where the viewing room is now live. All money raised will go towards Parkinson’s UK’s critical research into new treatments and a cure for the disease.

As Paul Jackson-Clark, director of fundraising & engagement, at Parkinson’s UK said, ‘Me, My Brain and I’ invites us all to consider our own brain, to visualise it as the source of all the things that make us ‘us’. Our brains curate our lives, on the one hand, acting as unique libraries, holding memories, experiences and skills, while on the other powering supercomputer-powered curiosity, creativity and innovation.’

Rob &amp; Nick Carter, Silver Lining, 2021 brain sculpture — Rob & Nick Carter, *Silver Lining*, 2021

'Me, My Brain and I' is on view at Koppel X, 48 Regent’s Street, until Sunday 30 October 2022.

The auction will take place at Christie's London and virtually on The Auction Collective on 14 December 2022

events.parkinsons.org.uk

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Harriet Lloyd-Smith was the Arts Editor of Wallpaper*, responsible for the art pages across digital and print, including profiles, exhibition reviews, and contemporary art collaborations. She started at Wallpaper* in 2017 and has written for leading contemporary art publications, auction houses and arts charities, and lectured on review writing and art journalism. When she’s not writing about art, she’s making her own.