| Home > Scholarly Contributions > Abstracts > Volume 13 Issue 2
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| Volume 13 Issue 2
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Aesthetics: If not from below, whence?
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Pavel Machotka, 1995, 13:2, 105-118.
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Abstract:
Fechner's attempt to build an aesthetics from below, admirable in its context, is beset with difficulties. Four kinds are examined here: empirical problems in obtaining clear results, definitional problems in deciding what elements it is appropriate to study, contradictions that follow the establishment of rules of combination, and the ultimate paradox for aesthetics of the certainty of outcomes. They are severe enough to require radically different approaches, some of which are suggested here.
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The horse and the cart: The contemporary artist and the aesthetician.
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Fred Martin, 1995, 13:2, 119-130.
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Abstract:
This informal survey of magazine covers and lead articles from Art in America 1990-1993 indicates new artistic forms such as advertising and photo journalism, new media such as digital imaging and installation, and new contents such as the politics of race, gender, and revolution, all of which may challenge the assumptions of both empirical and philosophical aesthetics.
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Fechner’s experimental aesthetics and the Golden Section hypothesis today.
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Holger Höge, 1995, 13:2, 131-148.
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Abstract:
Gustav Theodor Fechner started his "aesthetics from below" with an investigation of the golden section hypothesis because he was fascinated by the fact that a mathematic proportion should directly correspond to pleasingness. Thus, the golden section hypothesis fitted in his psychophysical approach, assuming that there is a correspondence between physical properties of stimuli and the sensations they cause. However, Berlyne believed that even minute variations in instruction or experimental arrangements may cause differences in the proportions preferred . Different from many investigations in the field the experimental manipulation to be reported here was to give different verbal criteria to our subjects. One of our experiments followed Fechner's method of production, i.e., subjects had to draw rectangles, and the other one was done using the method of choice, i.e., subjects had to sort rectangles. The results show that different criteria lead to different proportions in the material produced and sorted, respectively. Thus, preference judgements seem to be the outcome of a process of information processing by using both sources of information: the physical arrangement of the stimuli and the cognitively represented concept of the subject. However, under both conditions no preference for the golden section was found.
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As member of the IAEA you receive the Empirical Studies of the Arts
twice a year for free and are able to purchase all back issues since
1983 at discounted rates.
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Prototypicality as an explanatory concept in aesthetics: A reply to Boselie (1991).
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Paul Hekkert & H. M. J. J. (Dirk) Snelders, 1995, 13:2, 149-160.
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Abstract:
After more than a decade of research into the effect of prototypicality on aesthetic preference, Boselie strongly questioned the validity of this concept . It is argued, however, that his arguments against prototypicality as an explanatory concept in aesthetics are not convincing. The observed effects of prototypicality on preference together with theoretical notions on the importance of classification for perception and appraisal make a strong case for examining the relations between aesthetic preference and (proto)typicality.
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On the development of prototypes and preferences.
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Linda Brant, Philip H. Marshall, & Bret Roark, 1995, 13:2, 161-170.
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Abstract:
Using a methodology previously established to investigate prototype development, the present study evaluated the hypothesis that prototypicality is the basis for aesthetic preference. Over the course of several sorting trials, subjects classified (with feedback) computer-generated random asterisk patterns (exemplars) into two categories, each of which represented a different predetermined prototype pattern. Subjects did not see the prototype patterns during this learning phase, but were exposed to them in a subsequent sorting test phase during which sorting speed and accuracy measures were taken for old exemplars, new exemplars and prototypes. Following this test phase, preference ratings for old exemplars, new exemplars and prototype patterns were obtained. Various indices of prototype development, reflecting sorting speed and accuracy of classification of test patterns, were derived for individual subjects. The results indicated that although overall "classic" prototype effects emerged for both latency and accuracy measures, there was no evidence that prototype development was involved with preference
judgments. Alternative theoretical and methodological considerations are offered.
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1983 at discounted rates.
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Contrast effects and social desirability in art appreciation.
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J. Elbert V. Temme & Carline A. C. Gieszen, 1995, 13:2, 171-181.
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Abstract:
In a number of experiments the effects of presenting different categories of art in contrasting order were explored. In the first experiment traditional and abstract paintings and Chinese calligraphy were used as stimuli, each type was contrasted with the other two, which led to shifts in appreciation as well as in perceived complexity. Two more experiments were performed. In one of these experiments fragments of traditional and modem classical music were presented. The same effect was found as when traditional and abstract paintings were contrasted: enhancement of the appreciation of traditional music but no decrease in the appreciation of modern music. It seems that when art is concerned only positive contrast effects are obtained. A possible explanation could be that it is considered socially undesirable to admit a lesser appreciation of modern than of traditional art. To test this hypothesis, socially 'neutral' stimuli, Chinese ideographs, differing in aesthetic quality, were contrasted. This yielded the expected positive as well as negative effects.
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As member of the IAEA you receive the Empirical Studies of the Arts
twice a year for free and are able to purchase all back issues since
1983 at discounted rates.
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A measure of the information content of visual art stimuli for studies in experimental aesthetics.
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Paul J. Locher, 1995, 13:2, 183-191.
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Abstract:
This study was conducted to evaluate the usefulness of Mehrabian and Russell's Information Rate Scale (IRS) for measuring the information content of paintings. Forty-eight subjects, including an equal number of art-trained and untrained male and female undergraduates, rated sixteen twentieth-century paintings on each of the fourteen IRS adjective pairs and for "interest" and "pleasure." Factor analyses performed on all rating data revealed that the information rate score, which is the sum of ratings for all IRS items, provides a measure of the complexity of art stimuli that reflects the collative nature of this property. Specifically, it was found that items reflecting both physical and statistical properties of a composition (e.g., simple-complex; redundant-varied) and viewer "familiarity" with the content of a composition (e.g., common-rare; familiar-novel) were correlates of the information rate score. This value was significantly influenced by a painting's style but not by subjects' gender, training, or aesthetic judgments of it. Results constitute evidence that the IRS is a potentially powerful tool for the quantification and analysis of the information content of visual art stimuli.
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As member of the IAEA you receive the Empirical Studies of the Arts
twice a year for free and are able to purchase all back issues since
1983 at discounted rates.
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Simple pleasures: The psychological aesthetics of high and popular art.
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Andrew S. Winston, 1995, 13:2, 193-203.
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Abstract:
Popular Art, typically rejected by high art patrons, consists of technically skilled but sentimentalized images of wildlife, country life, and family life. Major themes and features of popular art are discussed. In a series of studies, viewers without art background focused on warm, pleasant feelings to justify choice of popular images, whereas experienced viewers focused on the structure of the work to justify preference for high art images. Preference for popular art was associated with the general belief that good art provides immediate pleasure to a wide audience. The ways in which popular art violates high art rules, such as the requirement for disinterested contemplation, are outlined.
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Buy the whole article at baywood.com - online shop now.
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1983 at discounted rates.
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