Aesthetic complexity
arXiv:physics/0505088
Abstract
Aesthetics, among other criteria, can be statistically examined in terms of the complexity required for creating and decrypting a work of art. We propose three laws of aesthetic complexity. According to the first law of aesthetic complexity, too condensed encoding makes a decryption of a work of art impossible and is perceived as chaotic by the untrained mind, whereas too regular structures are perceived as monotonous, too orderly and not very stimulating. Thus a necessary condition for an artistic form or design to appear appealing is its complexity to lie within a bracket between monotony and chaos. According to the second law of aesthetic complexity, due to human predisposition, this bracket is invariably based on natural forms; with rather limited plasticity. The third law of aesthetic complexity states that aesthetic complexity trends are dominated by the available resources, and thus also by cost and scarcity.
Times Up Laboratories Data Ecology Workshop II, Linz, Austria, May 2006, as well as at the Alpbach Technology Forum 2007 - Emergence in Science and Technology - The Five Senses, Alpbach, Tyrol, Austria, August 2007