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| Volume 15 Issue 2
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Why a special issue on the Golden Section hypothesis? An introduction.
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Holger Höge, 1997, 15:2, 111-114.
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Abstract:
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The Golden Section and the shape of objects.
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Frans Boselie, 1997, 15:2, 131-141.
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Abstract:
Though the claim that the golden section has special aesthetic value is a very general one, till now it has been tested only for a very small number of different shapes, most research being restricted to the golden rectangle. An experiment is reported in which the way golden ratios are implemented in sides of objects is varied, producing a variety of shapes. It was found that the golden section does not have a special aesthetic quality as compared to the ratio 1.8.
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Preference for proportions as a function of context.
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John Benjafield & Keith McFarlane, 1997, 15:2, 143-151.
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Abstract:
The debate over the aesthetic pleasingness of the golden section is still ongoing, over 100 years after Fechner's pioneering investigations. The present study attempts to advance the debate by investigating the role of context in determining which rectangular proportions are preferred. Participants were shown three different ranges of proportions in three different orders. The order of presentation of ranges influenced aesthetic preferences most when the first range presented contained relatively "thin" rectangles. However, when the first range presented contained relatively "thick" rectangles, or had the golden section as its mid-point, then the most preferred proportion was in the vicinity of the golden section. These results are discussed in relation to the current controversy concerning the aesthetic significance of the golden section.
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1983 at discounted rates.
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The preference amongst product designers for the Golden Section in line partitioning.
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W. D. K. Macrosson & G. C. Strachan, 1997, 15:2, 153-163.
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Abstract:
In an effort to establish the reality of a preference for the golden section a group of subjects who were already trained and experienced in matters of aesthetic taste were recruited to engage in a simple line partitioning exercise. The experimental protocol employed in the exercise followed one which has been fully described in the literature. It was anticipated that for reasons of convention or of taste the subjects would partition the line segments mainly in the proportions of the golden ratio. The reality did not match the expectation in so far as the subjects partitioned the line segments mainly in the proportions of 1: 1 and 1:2. The result was interpreted in terms of the development of aesthetic maturity being accompanied by a preference for higher levels of spontaneously observable symmetry.
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The shape of things: But not the Golden Section.
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George K. Shortess, J. Craig Clarke, & Kathleen Shannon, 1997, 15:2, 165-176.
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Abstract:
For two-dimensional rectangular objects, a fundamental characteristic is the ratio of height and width. Ratios were calculated for paintings that are both high art and popular art. They show excellent agreement in both the shapes of the distributions and the medians of approximately 1.3. Ratios were calculated for two-dimensional art supplies and other objects. With some exceptions, the representative ratios for many of these objects are also close to 1.3. Two mathematical ratios are suggested. One is 4:3, found in the first Pythagorean triple, the three sides of a right triangle. The other is the plastic number studied by Richard Padovan. Although neither has the status of the golden section, either ratio would be a better candidate for describing the regularity in the proportions of rectangular objects.
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1983 at discounted rates.
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The vase on the mantelpiece: The Golden Section in context.
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Vladimir J. Koneni, 1997, 15:2, 177-207.
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Abstract:
The golden section (GS) was investigated in three experiments (N 3D 91, 87, and 73 psychology students, respectively), using both traditional methods (line bisection, production of rectangles), and novel stimuli (contours and cutouts of vases constructed by the GS and non-GS principles) and tasks (the placement of "vases" on an imaginary and a laboratory, purpose-built, mantelpiece). In five different tasks, which varied considerably in technical details, there was absolutely no evidence for the significance of the GS, nor was there a general preference for the GS vases. Instead, the search for balance seemed to motivate the subjects' mantelpiece placement choices, guided by the area ("weight"), rather than the shape, of the vases. In addition, the results cast serious doubt on the generalizability of conclusions based on the research on rectangles to real-world aesthetic objects and choices. Other substantive and methodological issues, especially with regard to the future research on the GS, and to ecological validity, were discussed.
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The Golden Section and the aesthetics of form and composition: A cognitive model.
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I. C. McManus & P. Weatherby, 1997, 15:2, 209-232.
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Abstract:
Previous work on the aesthetics of simple figures such as rectangles and triangles, as well as on the aesthetics of color, suggests that although there are clear population level preferences, there are also large individual differences which are temporally stable, and which any adequate theoretical analysis must take into account. Data presented here show similar phenomena in a related problem in composition-where to place an object within the frame of a picture to produce the optimal aesthetic effect. A novel and powerful "method of randomized paired comparisons" first showed that there are overall population level preferences, with objects being placed preferentially at the two golden sections horizontally, and between the two golden sections vertically. As in the studies of simple figures and colors, there are large individual differences. A cognitive model of "sensory aesthetics" is proposed in which continua of any type (space, geometric objects, colors, or whatever), are described categorically, usually in terms of words such as "square," "rectangle," "line," etc., each of which is a fuzzy set. Preference functions are then derived from the union and intersection of the fuzzy set functions, which differ between individuals as their categories differ or as they prefer objects which are prototypical, or are at the boundaries between prototypes. There is therefore wide inter-individual variability.
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1983 at discounted rates.
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The Golden Section hypothesis - Its last funeral.
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Holger Höge, 1997, 15:2, 233-255.
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Abstract:
Since the very beginning of experimental aesthetics with Fechner's investigation of the Holbein Madonna (1872) and the aesthetic pleasingness of the golden section (1865, 1871a, 1876/1925/1978) there have been reports with widely differing results on this hypothesis (to quote only a few: Benjafield, 1976; Boselie, 1992; Davis, 1933; Godkewitsch, 1974; Haines & Davies, 1904; Lalo, 1908; Piehl, 1976; Plug, 1980; Svensson, 1977; Thompson, 1946; see also the reviews of Green, 1995 and Höge, 1995). Thus, as there are so many results on the golden section hypothesis showing contradictory outcomes it seemed necessary to replicate Fechner's original study as far as possible: giving the same proportions, using white cards on black ground. Other specifics could not be kept constant because Fechner's report on the experiment is not very precise (cf. Fechner, 1876/1925/1997). As a complete replication is not possible, three experiments were carried out, each of them being slightly different in methodology. However, regardless of the conditions under which the choices were made, the golden section did not turn out to be the preferred proportion. The comparison with Fechner's results makes this research only quasi-experimental in character and, hence, inevitably there are some restrictions with respect to the strength of the conclusions to be drawn. But, nevertheless, the nice peak of preference Fechner reported for the golden section seems to be either an artifact or it is an effect of still unknown factors. Two possible hypotheses (change-of-taste and color-of-paper) are discussed. It is concluded that the golden section hypothesis is a myth.
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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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