On the Front Cover

Abstract

The Skeptic, Kim Frohsin's 1991 painting on masonite, portrays the human brain's fascinating ability to interpret the delicate details that constitute the faces of friends, family members, lovers, neighbors, and strangers. A face gives form and color to the languages, emotions, and thoughts originating in the brain operating behind it-all while serving as the focal point of human interaction. The Skeptic seems almost devoid of emotion yet profoundly pensive and mysteriously androgynous, shifting and lacking definition. The different shading of the two sides of the skeptic's face corresponds to the intrinsic duality of the human brain, whereby each hemisphere specializes in different higher-order processes including the perception of faces.