Eye-catching

(Photograph) - Artist Humphrey Ocean has his eye tracked as he draws. He has teamed up with scientist John Tchalenko to try to find out how a painter paints. 'Activation occurred in the right frontal region of the brain whereas in non-artist controls, it occurred in the posterior region,' Dr Tchalenko said. 'It appears that Mr Ocean was "thinking" the portraits, while the controls were "slavishly copying" the photographs.'

The results are shown in the exhibition, 'The Painter's Eye', at the National Portrait Gallery, London. The exhibition is part of the Wellcome Trust's SCI ART initiative, which encourages partnerships between scientists and artists.