Calligraphy Style Appreciation from a Neuroaesthetic Perspective: An Eye-Tracking Comparison of Calligraphy Teachers, Students, and Novices
Abstract
or formal features of a work, while what viewers actually do when they appreciate calligraphy has seldom been examined with process data.
In this study, we recorded eye movements to compare how viewers with different amounts of training looked at calligraphy. Six calligraphy
teachers, 20 calligraphy majors, and 20 students without calligraphy training viewed five representative works in cursive, regular, clerical,
running, and seal scripts. We marked the main text of each work as the area of interest and compared total fixation duration across the three
groups. Because several variables were not normally distributed, Kruskal-Wallis tests and Bonferroni-adjusted post hoc comparisons were
used. Heat maps, scan paths, gaze videos, and post-viewing questionnaires were examined together. The three groups differed on every script
(all p <.001). Teachers spent the most time on the AOI; calligraphy majors came next; novices spent significantly less time than both groups (all
p <.01). The teachers usually followed the column order of the work and returned to stroke execution, character structure, and spacing. Novices moved across the page more irregularly and often stopped when they could not read the text. Questionnaire responses showed the same
gradient: teachers described clear strategies, majors described some strategies, and novices described almost none. These findings suggest two
practical approaches for calligraphy courses: first ask students to grasp the whole composition, then guide them to inspect diagnostic details;
and use recordings of expert gaze to show how experienced viewers read a work. Eye-tracking can therefore provide useful evidence for both
teaching and assessment in calligraphy appreciation.
Keywords
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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.70711/wef.v4i5.10120
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