Temporal dynamics of neural activity in an integration of visual and contextual information in an esthetic preference task

Abstract

While viewing works of art in galleries, we evaluate them by integrating at least two types of information: their visual properties (e.g., colors, symmetry, and proportion) and contextual information accompanying them (e.g., titles and names of artists). How rapidly the brain integrates visual and contextual information of artworks remains to be investigated. Using electroencephalography (EEG), we investigated neural activity when subjects with no professional experience in art viewed images of sculptures (masterpieces from the Classical and Renaissance periods, characterized by a canonical proportion of the golden ratio) and performed a five-scale rating of how appealing they were. At the beginning of each trial, we manipulated the expectations of the subjects for an upcoming sculpture by presenting information about its authenticity (either "genuine" or "fake"), although all images were actually taken from genuine artworks. The image of the sculpture was then presented, either in its original proportion or after being deformed by a photo-editing software. This 2 × 2 factorial design enabled us to identify whether each component of the EEG response was sensitive to contextual information (genuine or fake), visual information (original or deformed), or both. Results revealed that amplitudes of a positive EEG component emerging at 200-300ms after the presentation of the artworks (mainly distributed over the parietal cortex) were significantly modulated by both visual and contextual factors, indicating a rapid integration of these two types of information in the brain.

Art in Time and Space: Context Modulates the Relation between Art Experience and Viewing Time

“…In the museum, visitors with an aesthetic orientation encounter genuine artworks. Authenticity is an important factor increasing the monetary value [28] and aesthetic evaluation of art [30]. It remains unclear, however, whether the physical context, the authenticity of the artwork, or an interaction between them determines the enhanced art experience in the museum.…”

The effects of visual context and individual differences on perception and evaluation of modern art and graffiti art

“…While some effects of context on art appreciation have been discussed and demonstrated (Brieber, Nadal, & Leder, 2015;Brieber, Nadal, Leder, & Rosenberg, 2014;Gartus & Leder, 2014;Gerger, Leder, & Kremer, 2014;Hagtvedt & Patrick, 2011;Kirk, 2008;Kirk, Skov, Hulme, Christensen, & Zeki, 2009;Marković, 2012;Noguchi & Murota, 2013;Swami, 2013), the actual processes that cause contextual differences are yet unclear. Therefore, in addition to traditional rating scales, in the present study we employed the measurement of eyemovements to study whether the perception of artworks differs with context, or even interacts with different kinds of contexts.…”

In the white cube: Museum context enhances the valuation and memory of art

“…First, it is well established that the perception of any object whatsoever is not context-free, and that contextual information is stored in memory together with object-related information, facilitating subsequent object recognition (Bar, 2004;Engel, Maye, Kurthen, & König, 2013;Oliva & Torralba, 2007). Second, it has been shown that verbal and visual semantic contextual framing have a profound influence on art appreciation, as well as the underlying neural processes (Gartus & Leder, 2014;Kirk, Skov, Hulme, Christensen, & Zeki, 2009;Noguchi & Murota, 2013). Third, the few studies comparing art appreciation of original works exhibited at museums and their reproductions in the laboratory found differences regarding the appreciation of art.…”