Influence of spatial imagery and imagery control on geometric form location in paintings

• Published in: Thinking skills and creativity 2023-06, Vol.48, p.101298, Article 101298
• Main Authors: Pérez-Fabello, María José, Campos, Alfredo
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Fine art students; Geometric figures; Geometry in art; Imagery control; Spatial imagery
• ISSN: 1871-1871; 1878-0423
• DOI: 10.1016/j.tsc.2023.101298

•Mental images in the geometry of art.•Spatial imagery skills and imagery control in fine art students favour the visualisation of geometric figures in artworks.•Spatial ability and image control are useful tools to achieve competences in the artistic field. The study of artistic works requires an educated vision, a certain way of looking that unveils potential relations amongst objects. Fine art students develop skills that are resultant of their training in finding possible connections amongst elements in a painting. One of the abilities related to the observation and analysis of a work of art is the capacity to form mental images. The present study involved 188 fine art students (105 first-year students and 83 fourth-year students) and was meant to find out whether their education level, their spatial imagery ability and their imagery control had any influence on the location of geometric forms in a painting. We assessed hits minus errors. Results showed Results showed that fine arts students’ spatial ability and imagery control explained a significant percentage of score variation in the task of locating geometric figures in Velázquez's paintings. The significance of these results is consistent with those obtained in previous studies, spatial capacity, and imagery control influence on the achievement of skills in the artistic field.