Cognitive and historical information can spark interest in modern and contemporary art

Modern and contemporary art can be challenging for the general observer. We investigated whether aesthetic appreciation of modern and contemporary artworks can be enhanced through two types of intervention. The first, a traditional approach, provided information related to art history (historical intervention [HI]). The second, novel intervention, encouraged participants to observe the creative elements in the artworks by “thinking in terms of opposites” (cognitive intervention [CI]). We included a baseline condition with no additional information (no intervention [NI]). An online questionnaire was completed by 279 Italian adults. It began with 35 items measuring openness, curiosity, familiarity, and interest in art. Participants were presented with 15 artworks and randomly assigned to one of the three conditions: HI, CI, or NI. Six questions were then asked to assess the level of appreciation and interest in the artworks. Four final questions evaluated the participants’ overall experience. HI and CI interventions were associated with improved interest and greater feelings of overall enrichment and mastery (“I now feel more capable of appreciating this kind of artwork”). Participants also reported feeling less boredom in these conditions compared to the NI condition. Interestingly, the participants’ personality traits moderated responses in the HI and NI conditions but not in the CI condition. Thus, the innovative and more cognitive perspective (CI) generally produced more consistent effects.