Hooked


Thought provoking exhibition at the new Science Gallery at King’s College London looking at addiction.

The show uses both scientific discoveries and contemporary art to look at when habit becomes an addiction and when pleasures become darker. I was fascinated by the section which looked at phone and digital addiction which got me a bit worried about the amount I use my phone.  The commentary pointed out how addictive behaviour increased activity in the brain’s reward centre which creates dopamine and discusses how recovery processes deal with that loss of dopamine.

Works I enjoyed included “No Change” a slot machine by Kyros which just shot your money back out at you and the broken sugar table pictures here. Also a screen which just says “Please don’t like this” with a Like button, needless to say 274 people had pressed it when I was there and I must say it was very tempting and “The Curtain of Broken Dreams”, made by Natasha Caruan made of found gold rings.

Closes on 6 January 2019

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