An experienced and prolific writer, Robert Solso has a gift for simplifying sometimes difficult concepts in
science. Here he brings a refreshing new approach to the psychology of art, synthesizing research from a vast collection
of data on how humans perceive, process, and store information and applying it to the viewing and interpretation
of art. In this first systematic study of the connection between the new cognitive psychology and its importance
to art, Solso reflects on the long relationship between humankind and art, observing that "mind and art are
one." A major theme of this book, in fact, is that the clearest view of the mind comes when we create or experience
art, a reverse of the usual view of art and cognition. The illustrations cover a wide range of examples, including
African, Asian, and prehistoric art, but focusing primarily on Western art. The treatment of cognition applies
a blend of the standard information-processing model, brain function, and neural networks.