First International Symposium of the ArtNeuroVerse Biennale –
“Neurodiversity as Knowledge: Art, Agency, and Exhibition-Based Research”.

Supported by: Tel Aviv University’s Commission for Equity, Diversity & Community
Curators and Symposium Organizers: Vera Gailis, Yana Volkova, Kate Finkelstein

Neurodiversity as Knowledge begins with the understanding that neurodivergent perception is not only a lived experience, but also a way of knowing.
“[Neurodiversity dissolves] the assumption that we ‘see, feel, touch, hear, smell, and sort information’ in more or less the same way.”
— Judy Singer

The symposium asks how art and exhibition-making can make different forms of perception visible, shareable, and culturally meaningful. Through sensory mapping, color, comics, games, avatars, self-advocacy, curatorial research, and embodied encounters, the first international symposium of the ArtNeuroVerse Biennale explores neurodiversity as a source of artistic agency, critical thought, and knowledge production.
Difference is not an addition to the norm. Difference is part of how knowledge is made.

Registration form: https://forms.gle/Ce3PqjCr247HyT9y6
ANV Biennale: https://www.anvbiennale.com/en/
International Online Panels, Zoom | Recorded

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PROGRAMME

SUNDAY 21 June 2026, 18:00–20:30 Israel time
Chair and Moderator: Vera Gailis, Tel Aviv University

18:00–18:05 Welcome and Recording Note

18:05–18:30 Keynote I. Kate Finkelstein, Bar-Ilan University
Co-founder, Art NeuroVerse Biennale; researcher of art by artists with ASC and neurodivergent cultural agency
ArtNeuroVerse Biennale: innovative approach and ethical issues in curating of the project with/for neurodivergent artists
20-minute keynote + 5-minute Q&A

18:30–19:10
Panel A — Self-Advocacy, Accessibility, and Neurodivergent Exhibition Networks
2 talks × 15 minutes + 10-minute moderated Q&A

18:30–18:45
Agata Sztorc-Gromaszek, Doctoral School of the University of the National Education Commission in Kraków / Workshops of Culture in Lublin, and Magdalena Szubielska, Institute of Psychology, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń
A*tistic Females: Self-Advocacy Exhibitions on the Female Autism Spectrum in Poland

18:45–19:00
Vera Gailis, Artist and researcher, Tel Aviv University
Exhibitions as Sites of Knowledge Production: Mental Health, Art, and the Nefashot Initiative

19:00–19:10 Moderated Q&A

19:10–19:20 Break

19:20–19:45 Keynote II. Dr. Klarina Priborkin, Givat-Washington Academic College
The Curious Incident of Ableism: Deconstructing Haddon’s Portrayal of Autism in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
20-minute keynote + 5-minute Q&A

19:45–20:25
Panel B — Curating Perception: White Cube, Color, and Neuro-Epistemic Knowledge
2 talks × 15 minutes + 10-minute moderated Q&A

19:45–20:00
Nanne Buurman, Zentralinstitut für Kunstgeschichte, Munich
Inside the White Cube/Outside the Box: Reflections on Curatorial Research and Neurodiversity

20:00–20:15
Piper Hutson, Arts & Health Specialist, Missouri Arts Council
Chromatic Cognition: Color as Neuro-Epistemic Signal in Art and Perceptual Experience

20:15–20:25 Moderated Q&A

20:25–20:30 Closing

Onsite Symposium, Tel Aviv University, Social Sciences Library

MONDAY 22 June 2026, 16:30–19:45
Symposium Chair and Moderator: Vera Gailis, Tel Aviv University

16:30–16:35
Gathering and Welcome
Hosted by Yana Volkova, Tel Aviv University

16:35–16:40
Opening Remarks
Vera Gailis, Tel Aviv University

16:40–17:05
Keynote I. Kate Finkelshtein, Bar-Ilan University
Founder, Art NeuroVerse Biennale; researcher of autistic artists and neurodivergent cultural agency
ArtNeuroVerse Biennale: innovative approach and ethical issues in curating of the project with/for neurodivergent artists
20-minute keynote + 5-minute Q&A

17:05–17:40
Panel 1 — Form as Cognitive Interface: Comics and Games
Moderator: Vera Gailis, Tel Aviv University
2 talks × 15 minutes + 5-minute Q&A

17:05–17:20
Ayelet Shayvitz, The Neri Bloomfield School of Design, University of Haifa
Attention Lab: Unwinnable Games as Experiential Knowledge of ADHD

17:20–17:35
Dan Allon, Shenkar College
Graphic Essays: Academic Comics as Cognitive Practice

17:35–17:40 Q&A

17:40–17:50 Break

17:50–18:15 Keynote II. Dr. Klarina Priborkin, Givat-Washington Academic College
The Curious Incident of Ableism: Deconstructing Haddon’s Portrayal of Autism in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
20-minute keynote + 5-minute Q&A

18:15–18:50
Panel 2 — Embodied Visibility: Avatars, Repeated Encounters, and Somatic Knowledge, Moderator: Vera Gailis, Tel Aviv University
2 talks × 15 minutes + 5-minute Q&A

18:15–18:30
Adina Victoria Pinhasov, David Yellin College, Jerusalem
Too Many Elephants in the Room: The Avatar as a Method for Making High-Functioning Depression Visible

18:30–18:45
Ayelet Amrani Navon, Artist, Tel aviv
Repeated Encounters and Somatic Knowledge at an Art Exhibition

18:45–18:50 Q&A

18:50–19:45 Reception, Mingling, and Guided Exhibition Tour, Led by Kate Finkelshtein, and Yana Volkova
Informal reception with refreshments, conversation with participants, and a guided tour of the exhibition.