The First Blink: Impacts of Information on Art Appreciation

This study explores how contextualized information affects the way an individual views and interprets a painting. We conducted an experiment: -- randomly assigning participants to different groups: no information or different types of information, when asking them to view classic paintings. We recorded their viewing patterns through eye-tracking device, and asked their opinion on the paintings. We found that the contextual background information serves as an orientation of viewing, but its impacts are mediated by levels of cognition and individuals’ social backgrounds. At the lower level cognitive processing, participants who viewed paintings without any information paid significantly more visual attention to the paintings overall. Such effects at the lower level cognition are mediated by individuals’ prior knowledge, interest and familiarity with the art. However, at the higher level cognitive processing, there is no significant difference in their aggregated attitudes on the paintings; and no systematic associations between individuals viewing patterns and their evaluations either. This study invites further discussion on the cognitive assumptions in many sociological studies on art and cultural phenomena.