Dutch expert on film studies, neuroscience speaks at SU Humanities Center Mini Seminar Feb. 9

The intersection of digital screen culture, philosophy and neuroscience is the subject of an upcoming mini seminar presented by the Syracuse University Humanities Center in The College of Arts and Sciences. Patricia Pisters, professor of film studies and head of media studies at the University of Amsterdam, is presenting a free program, “The Neuro-Image in Contemporary Digital Screen Culture,” on Wednesday, Feb. 9, from 9:30-11:30 a.m. in the SU Humanities Center Seminar Room (304) in the Tolley Building. The seminar is open to the public, but seating is limited. To reserve a space, call (315) 443-7192.

“Much of Patricia’s research is informed by [French philosopher] Gilles Deleuze, who believed that we live in a matrix of visual culture that’s constantly changing,” says Gregg Lambert, Dean’s Professor of the Humanities and director of the SU Humanities Center. “As a result, Patricia is drawn to the complex relationship between the brain and digital media, the latter of which, she argues, determines our perceptions and our sense of selves.”

Pisters comes to SU on the heels of a research fellowship at Bauhaus University in Weimar (Germany), where she finished writing “The Neuro-Image: A Deleuzian Filmphilosohy for Digital Screen Culture” (Stanford University Press, forthcoming). Also in 2010, she co-directed the third annual Deleuz Studies Conference at the University of Amsterdam, which considers various linkages among art, science and philosophy.

Pisters has written or co-written several books, the most recent of which is “The Matrix of Visual Culture: Working with Deleuze in Film Theory” (Stanford, 2003). A member of the advisory board of the Dutch Directors Guild, she previously served as contributing editor of the film magazine Skrien, a collaborator at the International Film Festival Rotterdam (Netherlands), and an adviser to the Dutch Cultural Broadcasting Fund.

“The purpose of the mini seminar series is to present renowned scholars in a seminar-style format, which is usually more intensive and conversational than a traditional lecture setting,” says Lambert. “Our goal is to create a dialogue about the public possibilities of humanistic inquiry, as they pertain to interdisciplinary thinking and real-world issues.