Aesthetic perception and its minimal content: a naturalistic perspective

Abstract

Aesthetic perception is one of the most interesting topics for philosophers and scientists who investigate how it influences our interactions with objects and states of affairs. Over the last few years, several studies have attempted to determine “how aesthetics is represented in an object,” and how a specific feature of an object could evoke the respective feelings during perception. Despite the vast number of approaches and models, we believe that these explanations do not resolve the problem concerning the conditions under which aesthetic perception occurs, and what constitutes the content of these perceptions. Adopting a naturalistic perspective, we here view aesthetic perception as a normative process that enables agents to enhance their interactions with physical and socio-cultural environments. Considering perception as an anticipatory and preparatory process of detection and evaluation of indications of potential interactions (what we call “interactive affordances”), we argue that the minimal content of aesthetic perception is an emotionally valued indication of interaction potentiality. Aesthetic perception allows an agent to normatively anticipate interaction potentialities, thus increasing sense making and reducing the uncertainty of interaction. This conception of aesthetic perception is compatible with contemporary evidence from neuroscience, experimental aesthetics, and interaction design. The proposed model overcomes several problems of transcendental, art-centered, and objective aesthetics as it offers an alternative to the idea of aesthetic objects that carry inherent values by explaining “the aesthetic” as emergent in perception within a context of uncertain interaction.

The negative impact of saturation on website trustworthiness and appeal: A temporal model of aesthetic website perception

“…Therefore, the rating differences between the shorter viewing times may simply be a result of participants capturing too little information to be able to judge the trustworthiness and usability of a site, leading to lower ratings for the 50 ms presentations. Following Xenakis and Arnellos (2014), we consider usability to be re-assessed continuously as more and more possible interactions with a site can be imagined from perceiving an increasing number of control elements and their respective affordances.…”

Interference Modalities for Interaction and Performance Design

“…The pragmatist approach retains the functionalist theories of Human Computer Interaction, describing aesthetics as a rational mechanism (Ross & Wensveen, 2010), which operates through the built-in properties of artifacts. The naturalist approach considers the intangible (Hummels & Overbeeke, 2010) and hybrid agents (Latour, 1994), viewing aesthetics as resulting from perception within uncertainty (Xenakis and Arnellos, 2014 …”

Aesthetics as an Emotional Activity That Facilitates Sense-Making: Towards an Enactive Approach to Aesthetic Experience

“…According to this view, aesthetic experience is naturally engaged when agents interact both with, in general, uncertain physical and cultural contexts. Particularly, physical objects are aesthetically experienced not as mere objects, but as conditions that are emotionally evaluated by the agent in order to support actions or meanings that could reduce the interactive uncertainty 2014). Hence, no matter the way in which an interaction is culturally mediated, the aesthetic experience is ultimately grounded on the evolutionary development of the agent (Shusterman 2011).…”

“…In this way, we consider the aesthetic experience as an embodied phenomenon directly linked to adaptivity. More specifically, we consider the 'aesthetic' to involve emotional processes, which are elicited in the service of agent's autonomy as it interacts with the environment within a context of insecurity, instability and uncertainty (Dewey 1980;Schulkin 2009;Xenakis & Arnellos 2014). According to this view, aesthetic experience is naturally engaged when agents interact both with, in general, uncertain physical and cultural contexts.…”

“…Through emotions the agent has adapted a way of anticipating bodily movements in order to engage in safer and faster responses (Prinz 2004). This means that aesthetic values are generated not only in response to an actual goal achievement, but also in response to anticipated actions, thus giving to aesthetic experience a future-oriented perspective (Freeman 2000;Desmet 2007;Xenakis & Arnellos 2014). Therefore, by the term 'aesthetic pleasure', we refer to emotional reactions with positive values, which are associated with a positively valued anticipation of the plans (provision and selection of actions with the environment) of the agent, with respect to the fulfillment of its goals.…”