Experimental aesthetics of digitally enhanced art spaces: three contemporary art installations

Theoreticians and researchers working in the field of experimental aesthetics have in the last decade emphasised that the sensory, perceptual, and cognitive processes that underlie an aesthetic experience with visual art are driven by a complex interaction among characteristics of the art object, the viewer, and the physical, social, and historical contexts in which the experience takes place. Progress towards a full understanding of the nature of an encounter with art, therefore, depends on deepening our understanding of the complex interplay among these factors and processes. However, given the many factors known to contribute to the cognitive and emotional reactions to an artwork, it would be very difficult, if not impossible, for science to subject aesthetic phenomena to rigorous experimental scrutiny and identify the underlying interactive processes involved. This article is to investigate experiences of three digitally enhanced art installations in museums to access conceptual models and frameworks of aesthetic processing, the important variables that influence a viewer’s interaction with art, and the cycle of creation and enjoyment of digital art and culture.