# the artist as neuroscientist **Opening (not a real abstract):** Artistic licence taps into the simplified physics used by our brain to recognize everyday scenes, says Patrick Cavanagh. lthough we rarely confuse a painting for the scene it presents, we are often taken in by the vividness of the lighting and the threedimensional (3D) layout it captures. This is not surprising for a photorealistic painting, but even very abstract paintings can convey a striking sense of space and light, despite remarkable deviations from realism. The rules of physics that apply in a real scene are optional in a painting; they can be obeyed or ignored at the discretion of the artist to further the painting’s intended effect. Some deviations, such as Picasso’s skewed faces or the wildly coloured shadows in the works of Matisse and other meant to be noticed as part of the style and **Authors:** [[Patrick Cavanagh]]