Sixteen Experimental Investigations from the Harvard Psychological Laboratory by Hugo Münsterberg (100 books to read .txt) 📕

about two thirds of the examples the vista is enclosed by lines, or

masses, and when near the center, as being at the same time the

‘heaviest’ part of the picture, serves as a fulcrum or center to bind

the parts—always harder to bring together than in the other types of

pictures—into a close unity. The most frequent form of this

arrangement, as seen by the table, is a diagonal, which just saves

itself by turning up at its far end. Thus the mass, and hence usually

the special interest of the picture, is on the one side, on the other

the vista and the sloping line of the diagonal. In very few cases is

the vista behind an attractive or noticeable part of the picture, the

fact showing that it acts in opposition to the latter, leading the eye

away from it, and thus serving at once the variety and richness of the

picture, and its unity. A pure diagonal would have line and vista both

working at the extreme outer edge of the picture, and thus too

strongly—unless, indeed, balanced by very striking elements near the

other edge.

This function of the vista as a unifying element is of interest in

connection with the theory of Hildebrand,[16] that the landscape

should have a narrow foreground and wide background, since that is

most in conformity with our experience. He adduces Titian’s _Sacred

and Profane Love_ as an example. But of the general principle it may

be said that not the reproduction of nature, but the production of a

unified complex of motor impulses, is the aim of composition, and that

this aim is best reached by focusing the eye by a narrow

background—i.e., vista. No matter how much it wanders, it returns

to that central spot and is held there, keeping hold on all the other

elements. Of Hildebrand’s example it may be said that the pyramidal

composition with the dark and tall tree in the center effectually

accomplishes the binding together of the two figures, so that a vista

is not needed. A wide background without that tree would leave them

rather disjointed.

[16] A. Hildebrand, ‘Das Problem der Form in der Bildenden

Kunst,’ Strassburg, 1897.

Another interesting observation concerns the use of water in

landscapes. In nearly all appears an expanse of water, and in four

fifths of the cases it is either on the same side as the vista, or in

the same line with it. This is no doubt partly due to the

light-effects which can be got on the water, but it also greatly

reinforces the peculiar effect of the vista. That effect, as has been

repeatedly said, is to concentrate, to hold, to fixate vision. The

same thing is true of the horizontal line, as was shown by some

preliminary experiments not here reported. The contrast to the

ordinary trend of lines—particularly in a landscape—together with

the strong suggestion of quiet and repose, serve to give the same

concentrating effect to the horizontal lines as to the vista.

In general, it may be said that balance in landscape is effected

between Mass and Interest on one side and Vista and Line on the other;

and that unity is given especially by the use of Vista and the

horizontal lines of water.

A survey of the subject-types remaining on the list of page 514 shows

that they may quite well be grouped together with those already

examined; that is, the Holy Families, Adorations, Crucifixions, and

Annunciations are very symmetrical in type, and present the same

characteristics as the Altarpieces. The Miscellaneous (mostly

religious) pictures, the Descents, and the Allegorical are, for the

most part, freely composed, irregular, full of action, and resemble

the genre pictures. The Single Figure pictures, Religious, Allegorical

and Genre, and the Portrait Groups, resemble the portraits. Therefore,

it may be considered that the existence of a perfect substitutional

symmetry has been established, inasmuch as it has been shown to be

almost invariably present in the types examined.

The experimental treatment of the isolated elements determined the

particular function of each in distributing attention in the field of

view. The object of large size claims attention, but does not rivet it

nor draw it out powerfully; the intrinsically interesting object does

excite it, but limits it to a comparatively small field; the

suggestion of movement or of attention on the part of pictured objects

carries the attention through the field of its operation; the vista

rivets the attention without powerfully exciting it, and the line

extending in a certain direction carries the attention in the same way

as does the suggestion of movement. But the preceding statistical

analysis has shown that while all are possibly operative in a given

picture, some are given much more importance than others, and that in

pictures of different types different elements predominate.

The following table gives the distribution of the elements in the

single-center pictures already examined. The numbers represent the per

cent. of the whole number of balanced pictures in which the given

element appears once or more.

S.C. Ms. I. D. V. L.

Alt. p. 26 100 91 13 31

Mad. 21 100 96 27 64

Port. 80 63 98 17 61

Genre 57 89 57 46 44

Lands. 66 73 22 98 31

It is seen that in those classes with a general symmetrical framework,

the altar and Madonna pictures, the elements of interest and direction

of attention are overwhelmingly predominant—which is the more to be

expected as they appear, of course, as variations in a symmetry which

has already, so to speak, disposed of mass and line. They give what

action there is, and when they are very strongly operative, we see by

page 516, (8) and (9) and note, that they are opposed by salient lines

and deep vistas, which act more strongly on the attention than mass;

compare further Mad., V. 27 per cent., L. 64 per cent., as against

Alt., V. 13 per cent., L. 19 per cent., as confirming the view that

they are used in the more irregular and active pictures. But I. keeps

its predominance throughout the types, except in the portraits, where,

indeed, we should not expect it to be so powerful, since the principal

object of interest must always be the portrait head, and that is in

most cases in the Cn., and therefore not counted. Yet I. has a

respectable representation even in the portrait table, showing that

such objects as jewels, embroideries, beautiful hands, etc., count

largely too in composition. Its greatest is in the genre table, where,

of course, human interests constitute the subject matter.

It is among the portraits that the direction of suggestion is most

operative. Since these pictures represent no action, it must be given

by those elements which move and distribute the attention; in

accordance with which we see that line also is unusually influential.

As remarked above, the altarpieces and Madonna pictures, also largely

without action, depend largely for it on D., in the form of direction

of attention (D. 91 per cent.).

The vista, as said above, rivets and confines the attention. We can,

therefore, understand how it is that in the genre table it suddenly

appears very numerous. The active character of these pictures

naturally requires to be modified, and the vista introduces a powerful

balancing element, which is yet quiet; or, it might be said, inasmuch

as energy is certainly expended in plunging down the third dimension,

the vista introduces an element of action of counterbalancing

character. In the landscape it introduces the principal element of

variety. It is always to be found in those parts of the picture which

are opposed to other powerful elements, and the ‘heavier’ the other

side, the deeper the vista. This is especially to be noted in all

pictures of the S. & S. type, where the one side is very ‘heavy’ and

the deep vista practically invariable on the other. Also in D.C.

pictures it serves as a kind of fulcrum, or unifying element, inasmuch

as it rivets the attention between the two detached sides. (Cf. D.C.

among Alt. and Mad.)

The direction of suggestion by means of the indication of a line (L.),

quite naturally is more frequent in the Madonna-picture and Portrait

classes. Both these types are of large simple outline, so that L.

would be expected to tell, but more or less irregular, so that it

would not appear on both sides, thus neutralizing its action, as often

in the symmetrical altarpieces. This neutralizing explains why it has

a comparatively small per cent. in the landscape table, it having

appeared in minor form all over the field, but less often in large

salient outline. It is worth noticing that for the D.C. of both genre

and landscape, the per cent. drops appreciably. As it is, in a decided

majority of cases, combined with V.—the shape being more or less a

diagonal slope—it is clear that it acts as a kind of bond between the

two sides, carrying the attention without a break from one to the

other.

The element of mass requires less comment. It appears in greatest

number in those pictures which have little action, portraits and

landscapes, and which are yet not symmetrical—in which last case mass

is, of course, already balanced. In fact, it must of necessity exert

a certain influence in every unsymmetrical picture, and so its

percentage, even for genre pictures, is large.

Thus we may regard the elements as both attracting attention to a

certain spot and dispersing it over a field. Those types which are of

a static character abound in elements which disperse the attention;

those which are of a dynamic character, in those which make it stable.

The ideal composition seems to combine the dynamic and static

elements—to animate, in short, the whole field of view, but in a

generally bilateral fashion. The elements, in substitutional symmetry,

are then simply means of introducing variety and action. As a dance in

which there are complicated steps gives the actor and beholder a

varied and thus vivified ‘balance,’ and is thus more beautiful than

the simple walk, so a picture composed in substitutional symmetry is

more rich in its suggestions of motor impulse, and thus more

beautiful, than an example of geometrical symmetry.

B. Principles of Composition.

The particular function of the elements which are substituted for

geometrical symmetry has been made clear; their presence lends variety

and richness to the balance of motor impulses. But the natural motor

response to stimulation has another characteristic which belongs to us

as individuals. The motor response must be balanced, but also unified.

In a picture, therefore, there must be a large outline in which all

the elements are held together, corresponding to this requirement of

unity. Now this way of holding together, this manner of combination,

may vary; and I hope to show that it not only varies with the subject

and purpose of the picture, but bears a very close relation

thereto—that, in short, it is what determines the whole character of

the picture. Just what this relation is will appear in the study of

our material.

Examples of these types of composition may best be found by analyzing

a few very well-known pictures. We may begin with the class first

studied, the Altarpiece, choosing a picture by Botticelli, in the

Florence Academy (746). Under an arch is draped a canopy held up by

angels; under this, again, sits the M. with the C. on her lap, on a

throne, at the foot of which, on each side, stand three saints. The

outline of the whole is markedly pyramidal—in fact, there are,

broadly speaking, three pyramids; of the arch, the canopy, and the

grouping. A second, much less symmetrical example of this type,