The preference for social content in painting: material and data

Previous empirical works have reported the roles of low-level visual features in painting preference. However, relatively few works have investigated the contribution of higher-level, social content in predicting painting preference. In an online survey, a total of 420 paintings were rated on their liking across 300 participants. The paintings varied in terms of the number of depicted people, the presence of interpersonal touch, and the depiction setting (i.e. indoor vs. outdoor); the stimulus set also included abstract paintings to provide stylistic variety. Across all participants, certain social contents were liked more than others. For example, paintings without people were significantly liked over paintings with people, and this was especially prominent in depictions of outdoor settings. Furthermore, while people significantly liked paintings without touch, this was only the case for paintings of outdoor settings. The study also explored how these preferences were modulated by individual differences. The findings underscore the relevance and importance of social aspects in art and how this interacts with our individuality. In doing so, the study comments on the intricate object- and subject-based forces that exist in one’s liking of paintings.

先前实证研究已阐述底层视觉特征在绘画偏好中所扮演的角色。然而，相对较少的研究探讨了高级别、社会内容在预测绘画偏好中的贡献。在一项在线调查中，共计420幅绘画作品被300名参与者就其喜爱程度进行了评分。这些绘画作品在描绘人物数量、人际接触的存在以及描绘场景（即室内与室外）等方面存在差异；刺激集还包括抽象绘画，以提供风格多样性。在所有参与者中，某些社会内容相较于其他内容更受欢迎。例如，无人物绘画相较于有人物的绘画显著更受欢迎，这在室外场景的描绘中尤为突出。此外，尽管人们普遍更喜欢无接触的绘画作品，但这种偏好仅限于室外场景的绘画。该研究还探讨了这些偏好如何受到个体差异的影响。研究结果凸显了社会因素在艺术中的相关性与重要性，以及其与我们个性的互动。在此过程中，研究对存在于个人对绘画喜好中的复杂客体与主体基础力量进行了评论。