The Effect of Objective Visual Ambiguity on Aesthetic Appreciation in Visual Artworks

This study investigates how visual ambiguity, defined through four low-level objective image properties, predicts distinct aspects of aesthetic appreciation: interest, cognitive affect, and emotional intensity. It further examines whether these relationships are moderated by individual art expertise, testing the hypothesis that experience cultivates a greater tolerance for challenging stimuli. Employing a cross-sectional design, 123 participants provided ratings for 60 diverse artworks, which were algorithmically analysed using four established computational metrics. Contrary to predictions, art expertise did not significantly moderate the relationships between any variables. The key finding was a fundamental divergence among the objective measures: fluency in simplicity and self-similarity was associated with decreased appreciation across dimensions, supporting theories on the rewarding nature of ambiguity and cognitive engagement. Conversely, fluency in symmetry and contrast...Show moreThis study investigates how visual ambiguity, defined through four low-level objective image properties, predicts distinct aspects of aesthetic appreciation: interest, cognitive affect, and emotional intensity. It further examines whether these relationships are moderated by individual art expertise, testing the hypothesis that experience cultivates a greater tolerance for challenging stimuli. Employing a cross-sectional design, 123 participants provided ratings for 60 diverse artworks, which were algorithmically analysed using four established computational metrics. Contrary to predictions, art expertise did not significantly moderate the relationships between any variables. The key finding was a fundamental divergence among the objective measures: fluency in simplicity and self-similarity was associated with decreased appreciation across dimensions, supporting theories on the rewarding nature of ambiguity and cognitive engagement. Conversely, fluency in symmetry and contrast predicted increased appreciation, aligning with classic processing fluency theory which posits that ease of processing inherently evokes positive affect. These results demonstrate that low-level visual fluency is not a unitary construct, but rather that its constituent features exert opposing influences on aesthetic experience. This split clarifies conflicting findings in the literature, suggesting that some image properties (e.g., low simplicity) contribute to an appealing informational complexity, while others (e.g., high symmetry) provide rewarding perceptual stability. The universal nature of these effects indicates their role as robust, bottom-up components in the perception of art.Show less

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The Effect of Objective Visual Ambiguity on Aesthetic Appreciation in Visual Artworks