Johannes Vermeer’s “Girl With a Pearl Earring” is likely one of the world’s hottest work – and now scientists consider they know why, by measuring how the mind reacts when the work is considered.
The Mauritshuis museum in The Hague, which homes the seventeenth century masterpiece, commissioned neuroscientists to measure mind output when viewing the portrait and different well-known works.
They found that the viewer is held captive by a particular neurological phenomenon they known as “Sustained Attentional Loop”, which they consider is exclusive to the “Girl With a Pearl Earring”.
The viewer’s eye is mechanically drawn first to the lady’s personal eye, then all the way down to her mouth, then throughout to the pearl, then again to the attention – and so it continues.
This makes you take a look at the portray longer than others, defined Martin de Munnik, from analysis firm Neurensics that carried out the examine.
“You have to pay attention whether you want to or not. You have to love her whether you want to or not,” he mentioned.
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By measuring brainwaves, the scientists additionally found the precuneus, the a part of the mind governing consciousness and private identification, was essentially the most stimulated.
“It was predictable that the Girl was special. But the ‘why’ was also a surprise to us,” mentioned De Munnik.
He mentioned it was the primary identified examine to make use of EEG and MRI mind scanning machines to measure the neurological response to paintings.
“The longer you look at somebody, the more beautiful or more attractive somebody becomes,” he famous, which additionally explains the recognition of the Dutch grasp’s topic.
“Why are you familiar with this painting and not with the other paintings? Because of this special thing she has.”
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‘The mind does not lie’
The scientists additionally in contrast the neurological response when wanting on the real portray within the museum versus being confronted with a replica.
They discovered the emotional response skilled by the viewer was ten instances stronger for an unique than a poster.
To hold out the checks, scientists hooked up an eye fixed tracker and cap to trace brainwaves on 10 topics that have been proven the actual work but additionally reproductions.
It reveals the significance of seeing unique artwork, mentioned Mauritshuis Director Martine Gosselink.
“It’s so important to engage with art, whether it’s photography, or dance, or old masters from the 17th century,” the director, 55, advised AFP in an interview.
“It is important, and it really helps to develop your brain… The brain doesn’t lie,” she added.
Vermeer usually drew the main focus onto one spot in his works, with the encircling particulars extra blurred, she defined.
Nevertheless, the “Girl With a Pearl Earring” has three such focal factors – the attention, mouth, and pearl – and Gosselink mentioned this set the work aside from different Vermeer work.
“Here we see somebody really looking at you, whereas in all other paintings by Vermeer, you see someone writing or doing some needlework, or a person busy doing something,” she mentioned.
“But that’s the big difference with this girl. She’s watching you.”
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De Munnik, 65, mentioned it could be fascinating to hold out comparable research on different well-known work, equivalent to Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa for instance.
Mauritshuis director Gosselink alluded to a pleasant rivalry between the 2 nice works.
“People sometimes call (The Girl With a Pearl Earring) the Mona Lisa of the North, but I think times are changing, so maybe the Mona Lisa is the Girl of the South,” she joked.
