Anjan Chatterjee
@anjanchatterjee.bsky.social
Neurologist, Cognitive Neuroscientist. Director: Penn Center for Neuroaesthetics https://neuroaesthetics.med.upenn.edu/ Author: The Aesthetic Brain
New review paper on visual aesthetics development led by our lab director @tilbegoksun.bsky.social, Aykut Coşkun, and @anjanchatterjee.bsky.social!
Tilbe Göksun@tilbegoksun.bsky.social · last mo.Here is a new paper I wrote with Aykut Coşkun and Anjan Chatterjee for the COPSY Special Issue on "Psychology of Art" @anjanchatterjee.bsky.social “Looking at artifacts”: The development of visual aesthetic preferences www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Beyond Beauty: How Art Experiences Converge and Diverge. our take. Even we like art works similarly, our reasons for liking them can vary. | Psychology Today (also, at the end of the post, there is a link to sign up to receive our posts by enail). www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/brai...
Beyond Beauty: How Art Experiences Converge and Diverge
Liking the same art does not mean having the same experience. Understanding aesthetic experiences requires looking beyond simple preference into more nuanced emotional responses.
psychologytoday.com
We are excited to announce the winners of the 2026 IAEA Awards 🏆 Anjan Chatterjee - Fechner Award Edward A. Vessel - Washburn Award Aenne Brielmann - Baumgarten Award Katherine Cotter - Baumgarten Award Congratulations! 🎉 Award winners will be honored at IAEA2026 in Jena and deliver an address
Our report of variability within components of aesthetic experiences. Going Beyond Beauty: Characterizing the Complexity of Aesthetic Experiences - Estrada Gonzalez - 2026 - Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences - Wiley Online Library nyaspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
NYAS Publications
Aesthetic experience extends beyond beauty and liking. Using a structured taxonomy of emotional and cognitive impacts, we measured agreement in responses to artworks. Additionally, we tested such agr...
nyaspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Our take about the importance of slowing down in this manic world and "How Slow-Looking Changes Our Experience of Art" | Psychology Today www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/brai...
How Slow-Looking Changes Our Experience of Art
When we take the time to be present and curious, we allow for more complex aesthetic and emotional responses to emerge.
psychologytoday.com
Our take on the new movie, contextualized by our neuroaesthetics research. @pcfn.bsky.social. New Frankenstein, Old Biases | Psychology Today www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/brai...
New Frankenstein, Old Biases
Most people are biased to negatively judge people with facial anomalies. How does popular cinema reinforce this psychological effect?
psychologytoday.com
What is the relationship between art, mind, and transcendence. This episode of Closer to Truth explores this fascinating question. closertotruth.com/video/how-do...
closertotruth.com
Sometimes, to communicate science, we should choose "art that [is] ambiguous, that confuse and unsettle. Images that provoke more than illustrate." Reminds me of the Cortex journal cover case and @anjanchatterjee.bsky.social commentary on it
The curious case of Cortex covers
sciencedirect.com
A report on our recent study on nature and biophilic design. Designing for the Mind | Psychology Today www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/brai...
Designing for the Mind
Does nature, or nature-inspired interior design, help restore fatigued attention, ameliorate stress, and make us more creative?
psychologytoday.com
How do you think of art and science? More specifically, about artists in residence programs? Here is our version of one such program. 🧪 thepenngazette.com/glass-cosmos/
Glass Cosmos
thepenngazette.com
Longevity seems to be everywhere, with acolytes and enthusiasts abounding. Some cautionary comments. The Long and Short of Longevity: Why More Might Be Less | Psychology Today www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/brai...
The Long and Short of Longevity: Why More Might Be Less
Despite increased understanding in how to modify human aging, longevity as a wellness trend sidesteps questions of societal inequities and what makes a good life.
psychologytoday.com
One joy of running a lab is to host the best and brightest from around the world- a practice sadly under threat. From @moralnosc.bsky.social on the science of beauty and morality and her stay at @pcfn.bsky.social 🧪
Looking forward to giving 3 talks at the Brain, Behavior, and Emotions conference. Also excited- first time in Brazil! braincongress.com.br/evento/brain...
Congress on Brain, Behavior and Emotions 2025
braincongress.com.br
Pleased to be featured in the inaugural installment of the Neuroarts resource center new interview series: Voices from the filed. 🧪. www.neuroartsresourcecenter.com/post/voices-...
Voices from the Field: Anjan Chatterjee :: Neuroarts Resource Center
Learn, share, and connect to build the interdisciplinary field of neuroarts
neuroartsresourcecenter.com
www.nytimes.com/2025/05/21/w... Thousands of people have paid for Dale Bredesen’s unconventional program to reverse Alzheimer’s symptoms. The medical establishment says there’s little to no proof it works.
An Expensive Alzheimer’s Lifestyle Plan Offers False Hope, Experts Say
nytimes.com
Some thoughts on the many promises of neurotech. Neuroscams: Buyers Beware | Psychology Today www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/brai...
Neuroscams: Buyers Beware
Neurotech companies promise to harness electrophysiology to help us flourish. How do you decide if their claims should be taken seriously?
psychologytoday.com
With the usual caveats of the need for more and better studies. Yet, the evidence does support the use of some kinds of art in clinical spaces. 🧪A Room with a View (of Art) | Psychology Today www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/brai...
A Room with a View (of Art)
Enhancing the built environment with visual art is a major program of the arts in healthcare movement. Does it work?
psychologytoday.com
🤔💭 Check out the recent Psychology Today article by Anjan Chatterjee about CACI Chairman S. Frederick Starr’s book, Lost Enlightenment: Central Asia’s Golden Age from the Arab Conquest to Tamerlane 🔗 Read the @psychologytoday.com article by @anjanchatterjee.bsky.social here: buff.ly/MCfwI16
The Rise, Flower, and Fall of a Renaissance
A climate in which science, art, and culture flourished in the Golden Age of Islam and the conditions that foretold the Age’s demise.
psychologytoday.com
I was interviewed as part of this article on Neuroaesthetics. Also featuring @anjanchatterjee.bsky.social www.theoverview.art/neuroaesthet...
Neuroaesthetics: Unlocking How Art Can Make Us Smarter, Happier, and Healthier
Neuroaesthetics, an emerging field of research, studies how the arts can enhance our health and wellbeing.
theoverview.art
Lovely write up of our artist-in-residence @judithschaechter.bsky.social at the @pcfn.bsky.social written by @sarcher.bsky.social . Scientific inspiration made manifest in art. www.nytimes.com/2025/04/23/a...
At a Pennsylvania Museum, an Artist’s Glass Dome Provides Sanctuary (Gift Article)
As the artist in residence at the Penn Center for Neuroaesthetics, Judith Schaechter created a giant dome to spark joy. It’s now on view outside Philadelphia.
nytimes.com
A natural history of innovation in #science, #math, astronomy, #arts, and #culture. The Rise, Flower, and Fall of a Renaissance | Psychology Today www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/brai...
The Rise, Flower, and Fall of a Renaissance
A climate in which science, art, and culture flourished in the Golden Age of Islam and the conditions that foretold the Age’s demise.
psychologytoday.com
Our artist-in-residence @judithschaechter.bsky.social meditates on her time at the @pcfn.bsky.social. An Artist’s Immersion Into Neuroaesthetics | Psychology Today www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/brai...
An Artist’s Immersion Into Neuroaesthetics
What happens when an artist steps into the world of empirical science? A residency at the Penn Center for Neuroaesthetics revealed unexpected parallels between art and science.
psychologytoday.com
A non-technical description of a peer-reviewed paper I posted about a few days ago. Surprising findings (to me). Lesson: deeply held intuitions sometimes do not survive scientific scrutiny. 🧪 Is Art Appreciation Going Digital? | Psychology Today www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/brai...
Is Art Appreciation Going Digital?
Can viewing art digitally match the magic of standing face-to-face with an original? Our research challenges long-held intuitions about the power of presence.
psychologytoday.com
Are #nature imagery and other kinds of art helpful in #health-care environments? Our review of what is likely to be helpful, in what context, and how we can move forward to better ground the role of #art in #health. 🧪https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/15/7/1027
mdpi.com
The brain drain... 🧪 www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
A French university is offering ‘scientific asylum’ for US talent. The brain drain has started | Alexander Hurst
The Trump administration is cutting funding, while specifically targeting institutions like Columbia. No wonder academics want out, says Guardian Europe columnist Alexander Hurst
theguardian.com
When cherished beliefs and intuitions turn out to not be confirmed. Not a lot of difference in the impact of art seen in museums versus on a screen in the lab. Reasons to actually test intuitions. With @kohinoordarda.bsky.social and others. 🧪 #sciart www.nature.com/articles/s41...
A comparison of art engagement in museums and through digital media - Scientific Reports
Scientific Reports - A comparison of art engagement in museums and through digital media
nature.com
For 33+ years, in my lab, I have hosted bright scholars from around the world. With the current hostility to science and xenophobia, I hope young minds, a constant source of inspiration, do not turn away from the US. A short video--Hilary Serra, @pcfn.bsky.social 🧪 www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vhtr...
Hilary Serra - Studying Nature is Complicated!
YouTube video by Penn Center for Neuroaesthetics
youtube.com
Interested in fresh new #neuroaesthetics research? Want to hear from brilliant keynotes @neurobea.bsky.social, @anjanchatterjee.bsky.social & Fredrik Ullén from @ae.mpg.de, and an all-⭐ cast of speakers? Then submit your abstract & join us in Ascona🇨🇭 this Sept! Plz share! sbs.ethz.ch/conference.h...
Aesthetics 2025
Submission period: 10 February 2025 - 31 March 2025
sbs.ethz.ch
