Abstract
The aim of this study was to test the involvement of sensorimotor cortical circuits during the beholding of the static consequences of hand gestures devoid of any meaning.In order to verify this hypothesis we performed an EEG experiment presenting to participants images of abstract works of art with marked traces of brushstrokes. The EEG data were analyzed by using Event Related Potentials (ERPs). We aimed to demonstrate a direct involvement of sensorimotor cortical circuits during the beholding of these selected works of abstract art. The stimuli consisted of three different abstract black and white paintings by Franz Kline. Results verified our experimental hypothesis showing the activation of premotor and motor cortical areas during stimuli observation. In addition, abstract works of art observation elicited the activation of reward-related orbitofrontal areas, and cognitive categorization-related prefrontal areas. The cortical sensorimotor activation is a fundamental neurophysiological demonstration of the direct involvement of the cortical motor system in perception of static meaningless images belonging to abstract art. These results support the role of embodied simulation of artist’s gestures in the perception of works of art.
Highlights
Neuroscientific interest in the relationship between art and brain began to emerge in works by Changeux and Zeki [1,2] in the 1990s
Abstract artworks could be taken as offering effective examples of this position, given that they could be said to extract primitive perceptual principles from reality [6] – with regard to color for example, in the case of Matisse’s works, or motion, in the case of Calder’s
Other researches investigated the neural basis of aesthetic experience from the point of view of early perceptual and of higher order processes accompanying aesthetic experience [7,8] and reward mechanisms [9,10]
Summary
Neuroscientific interest in the relationship between art and brain began to emerge in works by Changeux and Zeki [1,2] in the 1990s. The first research questions generally concerned the visual processes underlying aesthetic experience [3,4,5]. The assumption was that the implicit and unconscious goals of an artist coincided to some degree with the basic functioning of vision. In this sense, abstract artworks could be taken as offering effective examples of this position, given that they could be said to extract primitive perceptual principles from reality [6] – with regard to color for example, in the case of Matisse’s works, or motion, in the case of Calder’s. Other researches investigated the neural basis of aesthetic experience from the point of view of early perceptual and of higher order processes accompanying aesthetic experience (including aesthetic judgment) [7,8] and reward mechanisms [9,10]
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