The Role of Art Expertise and Symmetry on Facial Aesthetic Preferences

Social groups and polarization of aesthetic values from symmetry and complexity

When deciding what images we prefer, our brain must weigh many aesthetic variables, such as symmetry and complexity. To date, aesthetic research has mainly focused on investigating one variable at a time. In this article, we use symmetry and complexity to study the problem of multi aesthetic-variable interactions. For symmetry and complexity, there are two simple interaction hypotheses. The independence hypothesis proposes that the evaluation of aesthetic variables is mutually independent. Meanwhile, Birkhoff's aesthetic-measure hypothesis predicts that people prefer images high in symmetry and low in complexity, and dislike the opposite. To test these hypotheses, we generated images that systematically varied in levels of symmetry and complexity. We then compared the subjects' preference maps to identify regions of likes and dislikes. Unlike the predictions from these hypotheses, we found that most, but not all subjects, formed two distinct natural clusters, termed "islands," in terms of likes and dislikes. We also found that people with more art exposure were less likely to belong to an island. If someone did belong to an island, their gender influenced which cluster they belonged to. We discuss alternate hypotheses, possible mechanisms for the occurrence of islands, and their possible social implications.

Facial morphometric differences across face databases: influence of ethnicities and sex

The scientific need for standardized, high-quality facial stimuli has driven the creation of several face image databases in recent years. These stimuli are particularly important in facial asymmetry research. However, previous studies have reported facial anthropometric differences across a variety of ethnicities. This highlights the need to investigate whether these differences can also impact the use of face image databases, particularly in facial asymmetry research. In this study, we investigated facial asymmetry-based morphometric differences between the multi-ethnic Chicago Face Database (CFD) and the LACOP Face Database, which is composed of Brazilian subjects. We found reliable differences in facial asymmetry between the two databases, which were related to ethnic groups. Specifically, differences in eye and mouth asymmetry seem to drive these differences. The asymmetry-based morphometric differences among databases and ethnicities found in this study reinforce the necessity of creating multi-ethnic face databases.

How Facial Symmetry Influences the Learning Effectiveness of Computer Graphic Design in Makeup Design

This study explored the learning effectiveness of drawing makeup designs by computer graphic design and compared the learning differences between traditional hand-drawn and computer-assisted teaching in cosmetology students at universities. The statistical analysis methods of factor analysis, descriptive statistical analysis, and paired sample t-test are used to analyze the difference in students’ learning attitudes before and after the course. It also explored students’ learning effectiveness. The subjects were 55 students from a cosmetology department of a university in Taiwan. The results showed that using a computer tool to create makeup designs improved the overall student learning effectiveness and effectively promoted students’ interest in learning. Moreover, through focus group interviews, changes in the learning effectiveness that were brought about by the use of computer graphic design tools were obtained. Among them, the mirror function could best meet the needs of students for makeup symmetry and design drawing speed and improve their satisfaction with computer graphic makeup. The results of this study are improving the learning effectiveness, maintaining a positive attitude and increasing willingness to learn, and the systematization and digitization of makeup design, and the results could promote teachers to obtain more efficient teaching quality, improve students’ professional skills, and result in better learning results.