Interaction of Depth Probes and Style of Depiction

• Published in: i-Perception (London) Vol. 3; no. 8; pp. 528 - 540
• Main Authors: van Doorn, Andrea J., Koenderink, Jan J., Leyssen, Mieke H. R., Wagemans, Johan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London, England SAGE Publications 01-01-2012; Pion; SAGE Publishing
• Subjects: pictorial space; natural perspective; art perception; artistic style; depth perception; picture perception
• ISSN: 2041-6695; 2041-6695
• DOI: 10.1068/i0500

We study the effect of stylistic differences on the nature of pictorial spaces as they appear to an observer when looking into a picture. Four pictures chosen from diverse styles of depiction were studied by 2 different methods. Each method addresses pictorial depth but draws on a different bouquet of depth cues. We find that the depth structures are very similar for 8 observers, apart from an idiosyncratic depth scaling (up to a factor of 3). The differences between observers generalize over (very different) pictures and (very different) methods. They are apparently characteristic of the person. The differences between depths as sampled by the 2 methods depend upon the style of the picture. This is the case for all observers except one.