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Curriculum vitae Prof. Karl Gegenfurtner, PhD

  • Education

    1998 Habilitation in Medical Psychology and Behavioral Neurobiology (Prof. Niels Birbaumer), Medical Faculty, Tübingen University, Germany
    1986-1990 Dissertation: Experimental Psychology (Advisors Prof. George Sperling, Prof. Tony Movshon, Prof. John Krauskopf), New York University, USA
    1981-1986 Studies & Diploma in Psychology (Advisor Prof. Jan Drösler), Regensburg University, Germany

  • Academic and Professional Career

    2001-current Professor of Psychology, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany
    2000-2001 Professor (C3) of Biological Psychology, Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg, Germany
    1993-2000 Senior Research Scientist, Department Prof. Heinrich Bülthoff, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Tübingen, Germany
    1991-1993 Postdoctoral Fellow, Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Center for Neural Science (Prof. J. Anthony Movshon), New York University, USA

  • Institutional Responsibilities

    2014-current Spokesperson of the DFG CRC/TRR 135 ‘Cardinal mechanisms of perception’
    2001-current Head of the Department of Experimental Psychology

  • Commissions of Trust

    2020-current Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Henriette Herz Scouting Program
    2016-2023 Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, member of the Fellowship selection committee
    2012-2013 President, Vision Science Society
    2010-2014 Board of Directors, Vision Sciences Society
    2004-2016 Founder and Organizer, Summer school ‘Visual neuroscience: From spikes
    to awareness’
    2004, 2014 Organizer, 'Tagung experimentell arbeitender Psychologen (TeaP)', Giessen
    1998-2003 Founder and Organizer, 'Tübinger Wahrnehmungskonferenz'
    Editorial Boards Journal of Physiology (2002-2009), Vision Research (since 2007), Visual Neuroscience (2007-2013), Perception (since 2009), Journal of Vision (since 2009), Psychological Research (2010-2014), Psychological Review (since 2015)

  • Fellowships, Awards and Third Party Funding

    2024 Verriest medal of the Internalional Color Vision Society
    2024 Russell DeValois Memorial Lecture, University of California Berkeley
    2020-2025 ERC Advanced Grant 'Color 3.0: An object-oriented approach to color'
    2020 Visiting scientist, Department of Psychology, University of Sydney, Australia 
    2018 Visiting scientist, Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, UK
    2017-2021 Deputy Senator, National Academy of Science (Leopoldina)
    2016 Wilhelm-Wundt-medal of the German Psychological Association
    2015-current Member, National Academy of Science (Leopoldina)
    2014 Rank Prize Funds Lecture, European Conference on Visual Perception
    2014-current Collaborative Research Center CRC/TRR 135 'Cardinal mechanisms of perception' (DFG), Speaker
    2013-2017 International Research Training Group IRTG 1901 'The brain in action' (DFG)
    2013-2016 BMBF-NSF Computational Neuroscience Program 'Circuit models of form processing in primate V4'
    2012-2016 Perceptual representation of shape, illumination and material (EU), Partner Marie-Curie Initial Training Network
    2009-2016 Reinhart Koselleck-Projekt 'Perception of material properties' (DFG)
    2008-2012 Coordination for optimal decisions in dynamic environments (EU), Partner Marie-Curie Initial Training Network
    2004-2011 Research group Perception and Action (DFG), Speaker
    1998 Heisenberg-Fellowship, DFG
    1995 Attempto‐Preis for excellence in neurobiology of University of Tübingen
    1995 Habilitation-Fellowship, DFG

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