TY - JOUR
T1 - When Art Moves the Eyes: A Behavioral and Eye-Tracking Study
AU - Massaro, Davide
AU - Savazzi, Federica Antonia Maria
AU - Di Dio, Cinzia
AU - Freedberg, David
AU - Gallese, Vittorio
AU - Gilli, Gabriella
AU - Marchetti, Antonella
PY - 2012
Y1 - 2012
N2 - The aim of this study was to investigate, using eye-tracking technique, the influence of bottom-up and top-down processes on visual behavior while subjects, na ̈ıve to art criticism, were presented with representational paintings. Forty-two subjects viewed color and black and white paintings (Color) categorized as dynamic or static (Dynamism) (bottom-up processes). Half of the images represented natural environments and half human subjects (Content); all stimuli were displayed under aesthetic and movement judgment conditions (Task) (top-down processes). Results on gazing behavior showed that content-related top-down processes prevailed over low-level visually-driven bottom-up processes when a human subject is represented in the painting. On the contrary, bottom-up processes, mediated by low-level visual features, particularly affected gazing behavior when looking at nature-content images. We discuss our results proposing a reconsideration of the definition of content-related top-down processes in accordance with the concept of embodied simulation in art perception.
AB - The aim of this study was to investigate, using eye-tracking technique, the influence of bottom-up and top-down processes on visual behavior while subjects, na ̈ıve to art criticism, were presented with representational paintings. Forty-two subjects viewed color and black and white paintings (Color) categorized as dynamic or static (Dynamism) (bottom-up processes). Half of the images represented natural environments and half human subjects (Content); all stimuli were displayed under aesthetic and movement judgment conditions (Task) (top-down processes). Results on gazing behavior showed that content-related top-down processes prevailed over low-level visually-driven bottom-up processes when a human subject is represented in the painting. On the contrary, bottom-up processes, mediated by low-level visual features, particularly affected gazing behavior when looking at nature-content images. We discuss our results proposing a reconsideration of the definition of content-related top-down processes in accordance with the concept of embodied simulation in art perception.
KW - aesthetic experience
KW - embodied simulation
KW - eye tracking
KW - aesthetic experience
KW - embodied simulation
KW - eye tracking
UR - http://hdl.handle.net/10807/5071
UR - http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3adoi%2f10.1371%2fjournal.pone.0037285
U2 - 10.1371/journal.pone.0037285
DO - 10.1371/journal.pone.0037285
M3 - Article
SN - 1932-6203
VL - 7
SP - e37285-e37285
JO - PLoS One
JF - PLoS One
ER -