Published in the journal Brain and Cognition, the study demonstrates that art appreciation may be a natural process of the human brain-other research has proven that art can change the way we see the world, even relieve mental fatigue and aid in recovery from illnesses like depression. It’s that belief in culture separating us from savages, and an eight-year long, seven country-wide meta-study conducted by University of Toronto researchers offers scientific proof. Shantell Martin, Walk Into Work mural at Facebook Menlo Park HQ
Universally beautiful like the work of the Renaissance artists, or polarising like Chris Ofili’s infamous The Holy Mary Virgin, we are preconditioned to react. We are biologically wired to display emotion toward visual works. From the cries of the ‘it’s not art, my kid could do that’ brigade to those moved by the most outré of art’s dark corners, studies have shown that humans are primed to appreciate art. In the age of the culture wars, it’s a definition that’s never seemed more true. With only a fraction of our genetic makeup differing to that of chimpanzees, it begs the question: what makes us human? It’s often been posited that culture is what separates us from savages. Perhaps that’s why we’re making such a terrible job of coexisting with the environment that supports our very existence. Humans are so much closer to the natural world, so much more an intrinsic part of it, than we care to imagine-rather positioning ourselves as lofty beings overseeing it from above. Those who’ve done their biology homework inform us that we share some 60% of our genes with tomatoes.
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