About a decade ago, psychology of the arts started to gain momentum owing to a number of
drives: technological progress improved the conditions under which art could be studied in …

The field of neuroaesthetics has gained in popularity in recent years but also attracted
criticism from the perspectives both of the humanities and the sciences. In an effort to …

Since the advent of the concept of empathy in the scientific literature, it has been
hypothesized, although not necessarily empirically verified, that empathic processes are …

Creativity is a compelling yet elusive phenomenon, especially when manifested in visual art,
where its evaluation is often a subjective and complex process. Understanding how …

There is increasing awareness that the perception of art is affected by the way it is
presented. In 2018, the Austrian Gallery Belvedere redisplayed its permanent collection. Our …

Whether beauty is in the eye of the beholder or shared among individuals is a longstanding
question in empirical aesthetics. By decomposing the variance structure of data for facial …

This chapter discusses eye tracking and the perception of paintings. The mutual interest
between art history and psychology can be traced back through over a century of research …

Humans have engaged in artistic and aesthetic activities since the appearance of our
species. Our ancestors have decorated their bodies, tools, and utensils for over 100,000 …

If we send a message into space, will extraterrestrial beings receive it? Will they
understand? The endlessly fascinating question of whether we are alone in the universe has …

While global image properties (GIPs) relate to preference ratings in many categories of
visual stimuli, this relationship is typically not seen for abstract art paintings. Using …