Brain waves reveal the active nature of engaging with art
Date:
March 28, 2022
Source:
Max-Planck-Gesellschaft
Summary:
A new study suggests that aesthetic experience goes hand in hand
with both actively constructing meaning from an artwork and being
in a state of heightened attention.
FULL STORY ==========================================================================
Have you ever wondered what the millions of neurons in your brain
are doing when you ponder a favorite piece of art? In a new paper just published in the Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, a team of researchers
from Breda University of Applied Sciences and Tilburg University in
the Netherlands, as well as the Max Planck Institute for Empirical
Aesthetics (MPIEA) in Frankfurt, Germany, present new work measuring
brain waves generated by aesthetically appealing experiences. Their
findings suggest that aesthetic experience goes hand in hand with both
actively constructing meaning from an artwork and being in a state of heightened attention.
========================================================================== Neurons in the human brain are constantly communicating. This
communication relies on very fast oscillations. In order to investigate
these processes during the reception of art, the international
research team conducted a study using electroencephalography (EEG):
The participants viewed different images of works of art and rated how
much each artwork moved them aesthetically while their brain waves were measured via an EEG cap.
When participants looked at artworks they found to be appealing,
the electroencephalogram revealed a greater amount of very fast gamma
waves over a certain part of the brain, as compared to when they viewed artworks that were not appealing. Interestingly, these gamma waves did not appear right away, but only after about one second. This delay suggests
that participants were not simply reacting to the visual properties of
an artwork, but that these brainwaves reflected a process of meaning
formation.
Edward A. Vessel, research associate at the MPIEA and co-author of the
study, explains: "We don't just passively perceive art, but engage in a
process of discovery that can last several seconds. We try out different interpretations and meanings. This process takes time to develop, and
can continue for many seconds as a viewer savors the feeling of engaging
with art." In addition to gamma waves, the scientists also observed
so-called alpha waves.
These were more pronounced for both high- and low-rated artworks, as
compared to images given medium ratings. These waves likely reflect
the fact that study participants pay more attention to art they either especially like or dislike than to works they feel neutral about.
The authors hope that this new research can contribute to our
understanding of how people appreciate art, but they also see it as part
of a larger question.
By using art viewing as an example of a visual experience whose
interpretation is both highly individual and linked to meaning, their
work aims to unlock the mysteries of how and why we take pleasure in
making sense of our environment.
========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by Max-Planck-Gesellschaft. Note:
Content may be edited for style and length.
========================================================================== Related Multimedia:
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Aesthetic_experience_goes_hand_in_hand_with_both_actively_constructing
meaning_from_an_artwork_and_being_in_a_state_of_heightened_attention.
========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Wim Strijbosch, Edward A. Vessel, Dominik Welke, Ondrej Mitas, John
Gelissen, Marcel Bastiaansen. On the Neuronal Dynamics of Aesthetic
Experience: Evidence from Electroencephalographic Oscillatory
Dynamics.
Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 2022; 34 (3): 461 DOI: 10.1162/
jocn_a_01812 ==========================================================================
Link to news story:
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/03/220328101305.htm
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