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Johannes Vermeer’s “Girl with a Pearl Earring” is one of the most popular paintings in the world. Scientists now think they know why, by measuring the brain’s reaction when the work is viewed.
The Mauritshuis Museum in The Hague, home to the 17th-century masterpiece, commissioned neuroscientists to measure brain output when viewing the portrait and other well-known works.
They discovered that the viewer is held captive by a special neurological phenomenon they called “Sustained Attention Loop,” which they believe is unique to the “Girl with the Pearl Earring.”
The viewer’s eye is automatically drawn first to the girl’s eye, then to her mouth, then to the pearl, then back to the eye, and so on.
This makes you look at the board longer than others, said Martin de Munnik, of the research company Neurensics which carried out the study.
“You have to care whether you like it or not. You have to love it whether you like it or not,” he said.
By measuring brain waves, scientists also discovered that the precuneus, the part of the brain governing consciousness and personal identity, was most stimulated.
“It was predictable that the Girl was special. But the ‘why’ also surprised us,” said De Munnik.
He said this was the first known study using EEG and MRI brain scanning devices to measure the neurological response to a work of art.
“The longer you look at someone, the more beautiful or attractive someone becomes,” he noted, which also explains the popularity of the Dutch master’s subject matter.
“Why do you know this painting and not the other paintings? Because of this special thing she has.”
“The brain does not lie”
The scientists also compared the neurological response when looking at the real painting on display in the museum to that of a reproduction.
They found that the emotional reaction felt by the viewer was ten times stronger for an original than for a poster.
To carry out the tests, scientists attached an eye tracker and a cap to follow brain waves on 10 subjects who were shown real paintings as well as reproductions.
This shows the importance of seeing original works of art, said Mauritshuis director Martine Gosselink.
“It’s very important to be interested in art, whether it’s photography, dance or old masters from the 17th century,” the 55-year-old director told AFP in an interview.
“It’s important, and it really helps develop the brain…The brain doesn’t lie,” she added.
Vermeer often focused on one location in his works, with the surrounding details more blurred, she explained.
However, “Girl with a Pearl Earring” features three such focal points: the eye, the mouth and the pearl, and Gosselink said this sets the work apart from Vermeer’s other paintings.
“Here we see someone really looking at you, whereas in all of Vermeer’s other paintings you see someone writing or doing needlework, or a person busy doing something,” he said. -she declared.
“But that’s the big difference with this girl. She watches you.”
De Munnik, 65, believes it would be interesting to carry out similar studies on other famous paintings, such as Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa.
Mauritshaus director Gosselink hinted at a friendly rivalry between the two great works.
“People sometimes call (The Girl with a Pearl Earring) the Mona Lisa of the North, but I think times change, so maybe the Mona Lisa is the Girl of the South,” she joked.
© 2024 AFP
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