Aesthetic Preferences Research Articles

ОРНАМЕНТОВАНІ ЗНАРЯДДЯ З ОРГАНІЧНИХ МАТЕРІАЛІВ МЕЗОЛІТУ–НЕОЛІТУ БАСЕЙНУ ДЕСНИ

The most earliest cases of using the long bones of ungulates as tools are known from the Middle Paleolithic. In the Upper Paleolithic time, the manufacture of tools from the long bones of ungulates, as well as the ornamentation of some of them, is often represented in the sites of Europe. The territory of the Desna basin, during the time of the Final Paleolithic – Neolithic, was involved in the same cultural and historical processes that took place in the northern part of Europe. But, for today, unlike many northern regions of Europe, in the territory of the Desna basin, items made of bone or horn are known only from Neolithic points. Ornamented tools are represented only by single samples. The purpose of this work is to соnsider ornamented tools made of organic materials found in the Desna basin and to publish a previously unknown sample of such tools found on the outskirts of Chernihiv, on Telyachiy island. The find from Telyachiy island is a fragment of a tool made from a long bone of a deer (Cervidae gen. etsp.). The the lack of a radiocarbon date makes it impossible to clarify its accurate dating. Based on the spread of columns of parallel strokes of ornament in the Mesolithic period and its continued existence in the Neolithic period, as well as the presence of finds of fragments of Neolithic ceramics on Telyachyi island, the found fragment of the tool, today, should be dated to the Mesolithic – Neolithic period. Thus, for the Early Holocene periods of the territory of the Desna basin, items made of organic materials are represented only by the Neolithic period. Among them, ornamented tools are rare specimens. Only for a fragment of a tool made of a long bone of a deer found on Telyachyi island, it can be assumed that it dates back to the Mesolithic. Given the meager amount of ornamented items made from organic materials from the territory of the Desna basin, this find is certainly an important source for understanding the ornamental traditions of decorating tools and the aesthetic preferences of the ancient population of the Desna basin.

The Image of African Art in Europe. The First Collections and the Reliability of Sources

More than a hundred years have passed since the “discovery” of African art in Europe, it would not be superfluous to ask questions: how was the selection of the source base of research carried out, and that, in fact, all this time, starting from the mid-10-s. of the last the last century, studied Africanist art history? According to most critics and art historians, African sculptures and masks served as an inspiration for Picasso, Braque, Léger and other French artists, the founders of the early avant-garde. One of his “fathers”, Paul Guillaume, even claimed that the discovery of African art played for Europe in the 20th century the same role as the discovery of antiquity for the Renaissance [Laude, 1966, p. 38]. But how reliable is the source base on the basis of which African art critics have made and continue to draw sometimes very far-reaching theoretical conclusions, and how justified are these conclusions? On the one hand, the selection of monuments in the first collections of African art was completely random; they took what they "liked"; on the other hand, they liked exactly what corresponded to the aesthetic ideas of their time — and at the beginning of the 20th century. the avant-garde quickly came into fashion, and after the choice was made, subsequent collecting was necessarily guided by the tastes of Vlaminck, Braque or Picasso. According to the author, throughout the history of Africanist art history, most of the research was carried out on an artificially narrowed source base, the nature of which was predetermined by the choice of the first collectors. The criteria for selecting things in the first collections were formed by European culture and aesthetics. Even when all available artefacts were collected, those that did not fit the idea of what African art “should” be were rejected and not exhibited. But it was the first collections that became the source base on which the studies of African art were built, and it was then that ultimately predetermined the idea of it. As a result, African art works provide more information about the aesthetic preferences of Europeans than Africans.

Learning Personalized Image Aesthetics From Subjective and Objective Attributes

Due to the widespread popularity of social media, researchers have developed a strong interest in learning the personalized image aesthetics of online users. Personalized image aesthetics assessment (PIAA) aims to study the aesthetic preferences of individual users for images, which should be affected by the properties of both users and images. Existing PIAA approaches usually use the generic aesthetics learned from images as a prior model and adapt it to PIAA models through a small number of data annotated by individual users. However, the prior model merely learns the objective attributes of images, which is agnostic to the subjective attributes of users, complicating efficient learning of the personalized image aesthetics of individual users. Therefore, we propose a personalized image aesthetics assessment method that integrates the subjective attributes of users and objective attributes of images simultaneously. To characterize these two attributes jointly, an attribute extraction module is introduced to learn users’ personality traits and image aesthetic attributes. Then, an aesthetic prior model is built from numerous individual users’ annotated data, which leverages the personality traits of users and the aesthetic attributes of rated images as prior knowledge to model both the image aesthetic distribution and users’ residual scores relative to generic aesthetics simultaneously. Finally, a PIAA model is obtained by fine-tuning the aesthetic prior model with an individual user’s annotated data. Experiments demonstrate that the proposed method is superior to existing PIAA methods in learning individual users’ personalized image aesthetics.

Esthetic preferences of orthodontists, dentists, and plastic surgeons for balanced facial profiles.

The aim of this investigation was to determine whether the facial esthetics of subjects rated as "attractive" can be related to specific cephalometric soft tissue parameters. The profile silhouettes of 100 subjects (45 males and 55 females) were rated by 60 esthetics specialists (20 orthodontists, 20 dentists, and 20 plastic surgeons) using a Likert scale, and 30 of the subjects were selected as being "attractive". The cephalometric measurements of the attractive group were then compared with norms for the general Caucasian population. The effects of specific measured parameters on profile beauty grades were assessed using the median test, and the following variables were found to show significant correlations between the Caucasian norms and the attractive profile group: the ratio of the upper to lower face height (P = 0.011), the ratio of the subnasale - labrale inferius (Sn-Li) and labrale inferius - menton (Li-Me`) lines (P = 0.011), the distance between the chin and the subnasale perpendicular (P = 0.002), upper lip thickness (P = 0.021), soft tissue chin thickness (P = 0.021), vertical height ratio (P = 0.021), and nasolabial angle (P = 0.021). A straight profile with a fuller and more protruded upper lip, a higher nasal tip, and a smaller lower facial third are considered to be the most attractive facial features, and may be useful for improvement of facial esthetics.

Comparative evaluation of smile attractiveness in various orthodontic treatment modalities- A cross-sectional study

Background: Smile plays a significant role in facial attractiveness and social interactions. The present study aimed to evaluate the smile attractiveness in subjects treated with extraction or non-extraction orthodontic treatment modality. Materials and Methods: Frontal smiling photographs of 100 orthodontically treated subjects with an age range of 16-25 years were taken and divided into two groups each having 50 subjects. Group I (ANB 0° to 4° ) was subdivided into cases treated with extraction (group la) and without extraction (group lb). Similarly, Group II (ANB > 4°) was subdivided into cases treated with extraction (group lla) and without extraction (group lib). Smile esthetics and esthetic scores were assessed on frontal smile photographs by using different smile variables objectively and with the help of raters (10 laypersons,10 dental graduates, and 10 orthodontists) subjectively. Results: In extraction cases, the esthetic scores of dental practitioners and orthodontists were higher than in cases of non-extraction. Between extraction and non-extraction cases, laypeople had no esthetic preference. In Skeletal class I, smile variables such as the arch form index, smile arc and maxillary incisor show had a higher value in extraction cases however, the buccal corridor was more in non-extraction cases. In Skeletal Class II, smile variables such as the maxillary incisor show and arch form index were more in extraction cases and exposure of mandibular teeth was more in non-extraction cases. Judgement given by the raters was mainly based on maxillary incisor show, number of teeth displayed, and buccal corridor ratio. In orthodontic patients treated with and without the extraction, statistically non-significant variations in smile esthetics and esthetic scores were found. Conclusion: Thus, a decision regarding the extraction of teeth in orthodontic patients should not be solely based on smile esthetics but other factors which determine extraction should be considered.

Jerome's Epistula Prima

Jerome wrote Epistula prima probably during the decade of 366–376. Little is known about this stage in his life, but it was apparently then that as a young man he became interested in asceticism and at the end of this period of time finally decided to become a monk. However, the ascetic ideas are not the main theme of Ep. 1. The letter tells the story of a falsely accused woman who was subjected to torture and survived seven strokes of the executioner’s sword. The way in which Jerome interprets and presents these events reflects his spiritual profile and aesthetic preferences. The text can be interpreted both as a letter (a ‘real’ or a ‘fictional’ one) with an embedded narrative and as a non-epistolary work with a dedicatory preface. This affects the way in which the reader responds to the introduction (where Jerome’s anxiety concerning the imperfection of his style is expressed) as well as his or her right to assess the subsequent narrative. None of these approaches eliminates the duality in the text’s structure. Therefore, it should be interpreted on the two following levels: as an epistolary speculum animi, which shows Jerome in the situation of undertaking the task of writing the narrative, and as another, literary speculum, which reflects the author’s soul by means of artistic expression.

Intellectuality and Artistic Aspect of Author in the Concept of Spinoza's Rationalism (Expressive-Typography on Indonesian New-Age Poem)

Intellectuality and Artistic Aspect of Author in the Concept of Spinoza's Rationalism(Expressive-Typography on Indonesian New-Age Poem). Typography is a rarecourse in the study of literature. Sometimes, it is neglected. In this study, webelieved that all parts of literary work contained valuable marks that could benefithumans and the development of literary studies. Most studies commonly focusedon how an author used figurative language in his work, not typography. In thisstudy, we investigated and observed in nature intellectuality and aestheticpreference of Wiji Thukul in the construction of expressive poems on his own. Weused Spinoza's rationalism as an approach for this purpose. In our analysis, wefound that being a member of the democratic party contributed to thedevelopment of Wiji Thukul's intellectuality so that he could become more literateabout social reality, while the experience of being a poet, in any event, hadcontributed to his competence and aesthetic preference. In this essence, webelieved that substance, value, and ideology are the most prominent in the currentliterary work's content, as well as in its form.Keywords: Literary studies, intellectuality, Aesthetic, Spinoza, typography

СОЦИОЛОШКО-ЕСТЕТИЧКИ АСПЕКТИ ФИЛМСКОГ УКУСА

The author of this paper puts cinematic taste under a sociological magnifying glass, acknowledging both aesthetic and psychological aspects of this complex phenomenon. The problem is observed within the familiar sociological triangle: author-work-audience. Artistic, therefore cinematic communication as well is treated as a social act. The relations within the communication chain are considered reciprocal, where a film audience participates as an active agent of communication. It is a receptive subject, but its taste has a great impact on the production of new film contents and the selection of authorial approaches. The paper pays particular attention to the problem of genesis and evolution of cinematic taste, in the context of sociological divisions of taste created by certain relevant theoreticians (Lynes, Gans, Bourdieu). A film audience is an informal and heterogeneous social aggregate, and its taste is primarily defined as a social category that represents a form of collective relationship (sensibilities and aesthetic preferences) towards films belonging to specific eras, styles and genres. This study examines sociological and aesthetic components of cinematic taste in the 20th century, in which film was the most popular art and a representative cultural phenomenon. Key words: cinematic taste, 20th century, sociology, artistic communication, audience, reception.

Aesthetic considerations when treating the Latin American patient: Thriving in diversity international roundtable series.

The Hispanic/Latin American population is the fastest growing non-Caucasian group in the United States. Within this group, demand for aesthetic procedures is on the rise. High ethnic variability among these patients influences treatment approaches and patient priorities. Understanding these ethnic differences is central to providing optimal care. To discuss similarities and differences in anatomy and treatment preferences of Hispanic/Latin American patients both within the United States and internationally and explore how these differences may influence or inform aesthetic practices. In support of clinicians who wish to serve a diverse patient population, a 6-part, international roundtable series focused on diversity in aesthetics was conducted from August 24, 2021 to May 16, 2022. In this roundtable, held in Medellin, Columbia, expert clinicians from across Latin America and the United States were invited to contribute and share best practices. The results of the second roundtable in the series, the Latin American Patient, are described here. A special emphasis is placed on procedures that address the most commonly encountered concerns in these patients. Hispanic and Latino patients represent a broad demographic with unique anatomical features, aesthetic preferences, and treatment priorities. Clinicians should consider these differences when treating this patient population.

What ugly and beautiful photographs reveal about COVID-19 lockdown experiences, everyday aesthetics and photography aesthetics.

Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, which restricted our daily (visual) experiences, we asked people to take an ugly and beautiful photograph from within their homes. In total, 284 photographs (142 ugly and 142 beautiful) and accompanying statements were submitted and brought to light an intimate portrait of how participants were experiencing their (lockdown) home environment. Results revealed an aesthetic preference for (living) nature. Beauty and ugliness were also connected to good versus bad views, mess versus cosiness, unflattering versus flattering portraits and positive versus negative (COVID-19) emotions. In terms of photography strategies, editing and colour were important for beautiful photographs, whereas a lack of effort and sharpness showed up relatively more in ugly photographs. A follow-up study revealed that other viewers' (n=86) aesthetic judgements of the photographs were largely in line with the original submissions, and confirmed several of the themes. Overall, our study provides a unique photographic window on our everyday aesthetic experiences at home during the COVID-19 lockdown.

The Influence Innovation Has on the Visual Appearance and Aesthetic Preference of Architectural Products

The importance of innovation for architectural products in the building industry increases due to global competitive markets and users’ increased value given to the visual aesthetics of products. Visual appearance is crucial in architecture and product design and influences users’ product choices in many ways. Substantial research on innovation exists concerning users’ purchasing, adopting, and recommending it to others, but little research investigates the link between product innovation and aesthetic preference. This gap in knowledge prompted our investigation. Quantitative analysis of a survey of 114 respondents from Australia was conducted in this study to examine whether innovation plays a significant role in perceiving the aesthetic preference of an architectural product more than other visual appearances. Standard multiple regression using SPSS V28 was applied for statistical data analysis. Results uncovered that innovation explained the highest percentage of variance in overall aesthetic preference, and the innovativeness of a product strongly influences the visual appearance and aesthetic preference. The findings of this study offer new insight into the level of innovation for new product development where visual appearance is of high importance.

An Empirical Study on the Promotion of Students' Physiological and Psychological Recovery in Green Space on Campuses in the Post-Epidemic Era.

Human health is closely related to the environment; a relaxing and pleasant landscape environment can make people feel less stressed and more energetic. To investigate the restorative potential of landscape types and landscape elements in the post-epidemic era from the perspective of visual perception, this study selected Sichuan Agricultural University's Laoban hill, Jiuqu bridge, and the ginkgo garden to carry out physiological and psychological measurement experiments with college students. Research results on the psycho-biological and perceptual recovery vary with the types of landscape spaces. The results of the physiological data showed that all three space types had no significant effect on the recovery of blood pressure and heart rate; Laoban hill and Jiuqu bridge had some impact on concentration, while the ginkgo garden had no significant effect; and all three space types had some effect on the relaxation of the subjects' mental state. The results of the psychological data showed that the subjects' emotions were significantly improved in the three different landscape space types. The space with the strongest restorative effect on negative emotions was the ginkgo garden, followed by Jiuqu bridge and Laoban hill. The spaces with the strongest restorative potential for positive emotions were Jiuqu bridge and the ginkgo garden, followed by Laoban hill. The results of the perceptual restoration data showed that the Laoban hill space had the most effective restorative potential on the human body, followed by Jiuqu bridge, with the ginkgo garden having the least effective restorative potential. The results of the study on the difference between the aesthetic preference of different landscape elements and the perception restorative effect of a space showed that "the harmony between artificial structures such as garden pieces and the environment", "plant species", "waterscape state", and "boundary clarity" were identified as significant landscape elements with perception-restorative effects. These findings summarize campus landscape types and elements with optimal restorative potential. In the future, in campus landscape design-an active approach with a scientific combination and configuration of campus landscape types and elements-can provide a feasible solution to enhance the potential of campus landscape restorative effects.

Explicit and Implicit Biases in Students’ Skin Colours Aesthetic Preferences

Several tools have been employed to detect the emergence and development of racial stereotypes and prejudices among little children and adolescents. In our study, we confront some of these tools, and present the results of the Skin Colours Test. In its specificity, the Skin Colours Test proposes a change in the object of investigation (appreciation of the homogeneity or heterogeneity of colours) and aims to detect explicit and implicit stereotypes and prejudices of boys and girls regarding aesthetic choices (even neutral choices) concerning skin colours. Sample: one group of 129 (64 F) students (M = 12.31), almost all of Italian descent, and another group of 129 (62 F) students (M = 12.36), less than 30% of different descents. Method: three pictures, each made up of 16 skin colours, were shown and students were asked to vote on their aesthetic preference between homogeneity or heterogeneity of skin colours and to give reasons for these choices. Main results: the motivations for some choices that preferred skin colour heterogeneity (neutral choice) over homogeneity, brought out stereotypes and biases. In addition, we consider the contextual specificities that the Skin Colours Test detects as crucial in order to detect specific educational needs and structure targeted educational interventions.

The Effects of Psychotic Tendencies on Aesthetic Preferences of Paintings

This study examined the effects of psychotic tendencies on aesthetic preferences for paintings. Although psychotic tendencies and related phenomena are often associated with creative achievements, little research in the field of experimental aesthetics has investigated their effects on the aesthetic experience. This study (N = 153) examined how the positive, negative and disorganized aspects of psychotic tendencies, defined through a comprehensive model of the Disintegration trait, are related to the aesthetic preferences of paintings. Results indicated a general trend whereby Disintegration and its modalities had a positive effect on the aesthetic preferences of non-canonical (Ugly and Incomprehensible) paintings, and a negative effect on canonical, traditional (Beautiful and Comprehensible) paintings. Examination of the Disintegration trait provides us with additional information regarding aesthetic preferences, compared to use of the Big Five model alone. Two processes – conservation and progression – are proposed as explanations for the findings.

NEUROMARKETING AS A TOOL FOR THE ANALYSIS OF VISUAL COMFORT OF ARTIFICIAL LIGHTING IN PUBLIC SPACES

Currently, most large cities in developed economies are developing and implementing master plans for night lighting. A comparative analysis of 14 master plans unequivocally indicates that the visual comfort of night lighting of open public spaces is one of the most important functions of the organization of the urban environment. However, it should be noted that the understanding of visual comfort in all analyzed works has a very subjective nature and is based on the personal experience and aesthetic preferences of architects. The author has developed a new approach to the analysis of the visual comfort of night lighting. This approach is based on presenting the perception of the visible environment as a step-by-step process of visual perception of the environment by a person. There are three stages of perception in total, namely: psychophysiological level (stage) of perception, emotional-aesthetic and visual-artistic. This article examines the prospects of using the neuromarketing paradigm as a tool for assessing the emotional (emotional-aesthetic level of perception) reactions of recipients to the night lighting of open public spaces. Based on the above, it became possible to determine the emotional and aesthetic limits of the visual comfort of the architectural environment, which in the study are reduced to three main functions of visual comfort: Compensatory (protective) - helps a person in the process of perceiving the aesthetics of the environment to restore internal emotional harmony; Integrating (that unites) - creates a feeling of harmony, integrity and involvement in the environment in human perception; Hedonistic - forms satisfaction from the aesthetic qualities of the architectural environment. Each of the listed functions of comfortable perception of artificial lighting of open public spaces is evaluated according to two groups of characteristics: color and brightness of light. Measurement of physiological and neural signals helps in the creation of creative design, development of emotionally attractive lighting projects, detection of depressive zones and in other areas of architectural activity. Brain scans that measure its neural activity and tracking physiological responses (eg eye saccades, pressure changes, breathing rate, etc.) are the most common measurement methods. Neuromarketing tools can become the basis for identifying quantitative parameters of emotional reactions of target population groups to the visual qualities of lighting in public spaces. Keywords: visual comfort, function of visual comfort, neuromarketing, architecture, emotional and aesthetic level of perception.

Effect of the 2D spectral distribution on visual aesthetic preference

Effect of the 2D spectral distribution on visual aesthetic preference

What makes an elegant walk: Aesthetic preferences for prototypical movements in human walking actions

What makes an elegant walk: Aesthetic preferences for prototypical movements in human walking actions

The contour effect: Differences in the aesthetic preference and stress response to photo-realistic living environments.

The interest in the response to contours has recently re-emerged, with various studies suggesting a universal preference for curved over angular stimuli. Although no consensus has yet been reached on the reasons for this preference, similar effects have been proposed in interior environments. However, the scarcely available research primarily depends on schematic or unmatched stimuli and faces heterogeneity in the reported results. In a within-subject design, we investigated the claimed contour effect in photo-realistic indoor environments using stimulus material previously tested in virtual reality (VR). A total of 198 online participants rated 20 living room images, exclusively manipulated on the contours (angular vs. curved) and style (modern vs. classic) levels. The scales represented aesthetic (beauty and liking) and stress (rest and stress) responses. Beyond our main focus on contours, we additionally examined style and sex effects to account for potential interactions. Results revealed a significant main effect of contours on both aesthetic (η2 g = 1-2%) and stress (η2 g = 8-12%) ratings. As expected, images of curved (vs. angular) contours scored higher on beauty, liking, and rest scales, and lower on stress. Regarding interactions with style, curvature was aesthetically preferred over angularity only within images depicting modern interiors, however, its positive effect on stress responses remained significant irrespective of style. Furthermore, we observed sex differences in aesthetic but not in stress evaluations, with curvature preference only found in participants who indicated female as their sex. In sum, our study primarily confirms positive effects of curvature, however, with multiple layers. First, the impact on aesthetic preference seems to be influenced by individual and contextual factors. Second, in terms of stress responses, which might be especially relevant for designs intended to promote mental-health, the consistent effects suggest a more generalizable, potentially biophilic characteristic of curves. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to demonstrate these effects in fully-matched, photo-realistic, and multi-perspective interior design stimuli. From the background of a previous VR trial from our research group, whereby the same rooms did not elicit any differences, our findings propose that static vs. immersive presentations might yield different results in the response to contours.

Sacred Sounds, Secular Spaces: Transforming Catholicism through the Music of Third-Republic Paris, by Jennifer Walker

<i>Sacred Sounds, Secular Spaces: Transforming Catholicism through the Music of Third-Republic Paris</i>, by Jennifer Walker

Power and Play

Power and Play