Windows to the mind =================== * Barbara Sibbald Increasingly, artists are using various forms of diagnositic imaging to create new art forms. Consider Elizabeth Jameson’s use of magnetic resonance imaging as the basis for solarplate etchings and silk paintings. Or take a look at Dr. Kaihung Fung’s “What lies behind our nose?” computed tomography scan, a winner in the 2007 International Science and Engineering Visualization Challenge. Unquestionably, the message may be dire, but the medium is often exquisitely beautiful. A newcomer to the scene is a group of six medical students at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia — which is internationally recognized for its strong support of the arts in medicine through its Humanities in Medicine program. In December 2008, second-year medical student Kate Kelly was nearing the end of her brain and behaviour (neurology and psychiatry) unit while at the same time completing an introductory stained glass course through the local community art college when inspiration struck. Design in mind and approval from Dean of Medicine Harold Cook in hand, Kelly recruited the help of friends and fellow second-year students Mandy Emms, Chelsey Ricketts, Morgan MacKenzie, Heather Thompson and Sarah Dobrowolski, along with guidance from local stained glass artist and instructor Terry Smith-Lamothe, to construct a medically themed stained glass window for Dalhousie’s medical school. *Windows to the Mind*, a 1.8 × 0.6 metre stained glass window completed in May 2009 is composed of 12 stained glass panels, each 18 centimetres square, depicting positron emission tomography scans of the brain in various states of health and disease. It now graces the University Avenue entrance to the Clinical Research Building. It’s all part of the visual arts of medicine. ![Figure1](http://www.cmaj.ca/https://www.cmaj.ca/content/cmaj/182/2/E143/F1.medium.gif) [Figure1](http://www.cmaj.ca/content/182/2/E143/F1) “Normal, healthy 20-year-old,” by Kate Kelly. Image courtesy of Kate Kelly ![Figure2](http://www.cmaj.ca/https://www.cmaj.ca/content/cmaj/182/2/E143/F2.medium.gif) [Figure2](http://www.cmaj.ca/content/182/2/E143/F2) “Pick’s disease,” by Heather Thompson. Image courtesy of Kate Kelly ![Figure3](http://www.cmaj.ca/https://www.cmaj.ca/content/cmaj/182/2/E143/F3.medium.gif) [Figure3](http://www.cmaj.ca/content/182/2/E143/F3) “Obsessive-compulsive disorder, hyperfrontality,” by Mandy Emms. Image courtesy of Kate Kelly ![Figure4](http://www.cmaj.ca/https://www.cmaj.ca/content/cmaj/182/2/E143/F4.medium.gif) [Figure4](http://www.cmaj.ca/content/182/2/E143/F4) “Migraine with visual field aura, occipitoparietal cortex ischemia,” by Chelsey Ricketts. Image courtesy of Kate Kelly ![Figure5](http://www.cmaj.ca/https://www.cmaj.ca/content/cmaj/182/2/E143/F5.medium.gif) [Figure5](http://www.cmaj.ca/content/182/2/E143/F5) “Astrocytoma, benign tumour,” by Heather Thompson. Image courtesy of Kate Kelly ![Figure6](http://www.cmaj.ca/https://www.cmaj.ca/content/cmaj/182/2/E143/F6.medium.gif) [Figure6](http://www.cmaj.ca/content/182/2/E143/F6) “Attention deficit, hyperactivity disorder, generalized hyperac-tity,” by Kate Kelly. Image courtesy of Kate Kelly ![Figure7](http://www.cmaj.ca/https://www.cmaj.ca/content/cmaj/182/2/E143/F7.medium.gif) [Figure7](http://www.cmaj.ca/content/182/2/E143/F7) “Bipolar disease, depression phase, generalized hypoactivity,” by Morgan MacKenzie. Image courtesy of Kate Kelly ![Figure8](http://www.cmaj.ca/https://www.cmaj.ca/content/cmaj/182/2/E143/F8.medium.gif) [Figure8](http://www.cmaj.ca/content/182/2/E143/F8) “Glioma, malignant tumour,” by Morgan MacKenzie. Image courtesy of Kate Kelly ![Figure9](http://www.cmaj.ca/https://www.cmaj.ca/content/cmaj/182/2/E143/F9.medium.gif) [Figure9](http://www.cmaj.ca/content/182/2/E143/F9) “Schizophrenia, hypofrontality,” by Sarah Dobrowolski. Image courtesy of Kate Kelly ![Figure10](http://www.cmaj.ca/https://www.cmaj.ca/content/cmaj/182/2/E143/F10.medium.gif) [Figure10](http://www.cmaj.ca/content/182/2/E143/F10) “Bipolar disease, hypomania phase, generalized hyperactivity,” by Sarah Dobrowolski. Image courtesy of Kate Kelly ![Figure11](http://www.cmaj.ca/https://www.cmaj.ca/content/cmaj/182/2/E143/F11.medium.gif) [Figure11](http://www.cmaj.ca/content/182/2/E143/F11) “Alzheimer disease, temporal lobe degeneration,” by Chelsey Ricketts. Image courtesy of Kate Kelly ![Figure12](http://www.cmaj.ca/https://www.cmaj.ca/content/cmaj/182/2/E143/F12.medium.gif) [Figure12](http://www.cmaj.ca/content/182/2/E143/F12) “Stroke, hemispheric ischemia,” by Mandy Emms. Image courtesy of Kate Kelly ![Figure13](http://www.cmaj.ca/https://www.cmaj.ca/content/cmaj/182/2/E143/F13.medium.gif) [Figure13](http://www.cmaj.ca/content/182/2/E143/F13) The *Windows to the Mind* creators, left to right: Morgan MacKenzie, Mandy Emms, Sarah Dobrowolski, Chelsey Ricketts, Heather Thompson, instructor Terry Smith-Lamothe and Kate Kelly.