Luca Francesco Ticini

Luca Francesco Ticini, brain scientist, initially studied paleontology and paleoanthropology, then switched to biology and physiopathology at the University of Trieste (Italy).
Finally, he got acquainted with work on the brain from Semir Zeki (Professor of Neuroesthetics at University College London) and worked with him on a joint project on the neuronal correlates of facial emotion discrimination.

Afterwards, during his PhD he worked at the Center of Neurology, Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research, (University Clinic of Tuebingen, Germany), using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in patients with cognitive disorders. His scientific work was funded by the EU's Marie Curie research programme and by the DFG-Cluster of Excellence 307 (Werner Reichardt Center for Integrative Neuroscience).

He is currently working at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences of Leipzig (Germany) investigating the functional and neurophysiological basis of action control and learning as well as of action involvement in aesthetic appreciation and artistic creativity.

He is President of the Italian Society of Neuroesthetics "Semir Zeki" and representative of the Institute of Neuroesthetics (London, U.K. and Berkeley, CA.).
His activities cover seminars and plenary lectures at universities, fundations, scientific and artistic associations, articles and essays which explore the relations between different forms of artistic expression and the physiology of the brain, as well as reviews of well-known artists and designers.

He has been involved in various exhibitions sponsored by the Italian Ministry of Research and is creator and curator of Genialmente, l'Arte del Cervello. For this project, which involved scientists of the highest calibre, such as Semir Zeki, Manfredo Massironi and the designer Ottavio Missoni, Ticini has been praised for his originality and the scientific content of his work by the President of the Italian Republic.