Microsaccades mediate perceptual alternations in Monet’s “Impression, sunrise”

Abstract Troxler fading, the perceptual disappearance of stationary images upon sustained fixation, is common for objects with equivalent luminance to that of the background. Previous work showed that variations in microsaccadic rates underlie the perceptual vanishing and intensification of simple s...

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Autores principales:	Robert G. Alexander, Ashwin Venkatakrishnan, Jordi Chanovas, Stephen L. Macknik, Susana Martinez-Conde
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Nature Portfolio 2021
Materias:	Medicine R Science Q
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/e2a499670a3c404bbea3131dae778efd
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:e2a499670a3c404bbea3131dae778efd2021-12-02T14:26:47ZMicrosaccades mediate perceptual alternations in Monet’s “Impression, sunrise”10.1038/s41598-021-82222-32045-2322https://doaj.org/article/e2a499670a3c404bbea3131dae778efd2021-02-01T00:00:00Zhttps://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-82222-3https://doaj.org/toc/2045-2322Abstract Troxler fading, the perceptual disappearance of stationary images upon sustained fixation, is common for objects with equivalent luminance to that of the background. Previous work showed that variations in microsaccadic rates underlie the perceptual vanishing and intensification of simple stimuli, such as Gabor patches. Here, we demonstrate that microsaccade dynamics also contribute to Troxler fading and intensification during the viewing of representational art. Participants fixated a small spot while viewing either a Gabor patch on a blank background, or Monet’s painting “Impression, Sunrise.” They continuously reported, via button press/release, whether the Gabor patch, or the sun in Monet’s painting, was fading versus intensifying, while their eye movements were recorded with high precision. Microsaccade rates peaked before reports of increased visibility, and dropped before reports of decreased visibility or fading, both when viewing Gabor patches and Monet’s sun. These results reveal that the relationship between microsaccade production and the reversal and prevention of Troxler fading applies not only to the viewing of contrived stimuli, but also to the observation of “Impression, Sunrise.” Whether or not perceptual fading was consciously intended by Monet, our findings indicate that observers’ oculomotor dynamics are a contributor to the cornerstone of Impressionism.Robert G. AlexanderAshwin VenkatakrishnanJordi ChanovasStephen L. MacknikSusana Martinez-CondeNature PortfolioarticleMedicineRScienceQENScientific Reports, Vol 11, Iss 1, Pp 1-8 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Medicine R Science Q
spellingShingle	Medicine R Science Q Robert G. Alexander Ashwin Venkatakrishnan Jordi Chanovas Stephen L. Macknik Susana Martinez-Conde Microsaccades mediate perceptual alternations in Monet’s “Impression, sunrise”
description	Abstract Troxler fading, the perceptual disappearance of stationary images upon sustained fixation, is common for objects with equivalent luminance to that of the background. Previous work showed that variations in microsaccadic rates underlie the perceptual vanishing and intensification of simple stimuli, such as Gabor patches. Here, we demonstrate that microsaccade dynamics also contribute to Troxler fading and intensification during the viewing of representational art. Participants fixated a small spot while viewing either a Gabor patch on a blank background, or Monet’s painting “Impression, Sunrise.” They continuously reported, via button press/release, whether the Gabor patch, or the sun in Monet’s painting, was fading versus intensifying, while their eye movements were recorded with high precision. Microsaccade rates peaked before reports of increased visibility, and dropped before reports of decreased visibility or fading, both when viewing Gabor patches and Monet’s sun. These results reveal that the relationship between microsaccade production and the reversal and prevention of Troxler fading applies not only to the viewing of contrived stimuli, but also to the observation of “Impression, Sunrise.” Whether or not perceptual fading was consciously intended by Monet, our findings indicate that observers’ oculomotor dynamics are a contributor to the cornerstone of Impressionism.
format	article
author	Robert G. Alexander Ashwin Venkatakrishnan Jordi Chanovas Stephen L. Macknik Susana Martinez-Conde
author_facet	Robert G. Alexander Ashwin Venkatakrishnan Jordi Chanovas Stephen L. Macknik Susana Martinez-Conde
author_sort	Robert G. Alexander
title	Microsaccades mediate perceptual alternations in Monet’s “Impression, sunrise”
title_short	Microsaccades mediate perceptual alternations in Monet’s “Impression, sunrise”
title_full	Microsaccades mediate perceptual alternations in Monet’s “Impression, sunrise”
title_fullStr	Microsaccades mediate perceptual alternations in Monet’s “Impression, sunrise”
title_full_unstemmed	Microsaccades mediate perceptual alternations in Monet’s “Impression, sunrise”
title_sort	microsaccades mediate perceptual alternations in monet’s “impression, sunrise”
publisher	Nature Portfolio
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/e2a499670a3c404bbea3131dae778efd
work_keys_str_mv	AT robertgalexander microsaccadesmediateperceptualalternationsinmonetsimpressionsunrise AT ashwinvenkatakrishnan microsaccadesmediateperceptualalternationsinmonetsimpressionsunrise AT jordichanovas microsaccadesmediateperceptualalternationsinmonetsimpressionsunrise AT stephenlmacknik microsaccadesmediateperceptualalternationsinmonetsimpressionsunrise AT susanamartinezconde microsaccadesmediateperceptualalternationsinmonetsimpressionsunrise
_version_	1718391342271299584

Microsaccades mediate perceptual alternations in Monet’s “Impression, sunrise”

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