Cognitive science and Art both deal with the human mind, often with different methods, but always with a shared sense of wonder at this most puzzling of phenomena. The aim of the “Cognitive Science & Art”course is to present parallel artistic and cognitive approaches to current topics relevant to both fields of inquiry.

For each topic, we will have joint seminars by a researcher from one of the labs of the Department of Cognitive Studies at Ens, and by an artist or researcher in a cultural discipline. In addition, there will be the opportunity to discover three creative institutions in Paris, with “hors les murs” classes at the Ecole des Arts Décoratifs (ENSAD); Sony Computer Science Lab (Sony CSL); Institut de Recherche et Coordination Acoustique/Musique (Ircam).

The course will be deeply interdisciplinary, with contributions from most labs and disciplines of the Master in Cognitive Science - but with no prerequisite, so all backgrounds are most welcome. Given the somewhat unusual format, students should not expect a traditional academic transmission of knowledge, but rather, they should be keen to participate in open discussions with individuals contributing right now to the ongoing and perhaps accelerating dialog between Art and
Science.

ECTS: 4

The list of topics and speakers for 2025/2026 is here:
https://moodle.psl.eu/course/view.php?id=25358.