Image Gallery

Mosaic of Mood is a Mark Rothko-inspired data visualization of the gender, age, and mental health diagnosis of the people who donated their brains to science after their deaths. The yellow color scheme represents people with no diagnosis or condition (neuropsychiatric controls). The blue color scheme represents people with a single episode of major depression. The red color scheme represents people with recurrent episodes of major depression. Increasing darkness represents increasing severity. Different hues refer to different age categories.

The visualization evokes the nuances and diversity in depression. I believe that this diversity can be understood at the level of brain cells. In my research, I use this valuable brain tissue to explore changes in neurons between the different colors of diagnosis categories.

Click here for an image with labels and legend included.

Presented at Mindscapes PGH 2020 fundraising exhibit.

Encroachment visually represents a facet of depression in which tendrils of darkness pervade your perception and narrow your focus. The ability to perceive details and vibrancy diminishes with passing days. Viewed in reverse, however, hope begins to reclaim mental territory.

Presented at Mindscapes PGH 2020 fundraising exhibit.

Mindnight is a picture of a section of the human brain received from a postmortem donor. The image is specifically of the amygdala, which is important for emotional processing and frequently affected in conditions like anxiety and depression.

The “stars” in the image are all neurons, and the black areas and streaks are tracts of axons, which carry signals from neurons throughout the brain. Just as we look up at the night sky and see beauty and vastness, so too does such a universe exist inside our minds, where each neuron is its own world full of untold possibilities.

Unlike the night sky, where the stars are somewhat more fixed and predictable, the arrangement and activity of neurons in the human brain is mutable. This neuroplasticity provides hope for people suffering from mental health conditions, because interventions like therapy, medication, and social support can change our mental landscapes.

Presented at Mindscapes PGH 2021 fundraising exhibit.