AESTHETICS OF THE GOLDEN RECTANGLE Why is the golden ratio pleasing to the eye? By: Sophia gadlin
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The Golden Rectangle
What do pineapples, the Mona Lisa, roses, sunflowers, and the human ear have in common? They all have the proportions of the golden rectangle. The golden rectangle has fascinated artists for centuries, and it has made their art beautiful. Artists, architects, sculptors and many other professionals still use the golden rectangle today. People say the golden rectangle is pleasing to the eye, but why? The golden rectangle is pleasing to the eye because of our ability to comprehend what we are seeing.
What is the Golden Ratio?
The golden rectangle uses the golden ratio proportions. It is know as the greek letter Phi. The golden ratio was used by artists and architects in the renaissance to enhance the beauty of their art. It is based on the fibonacci sequence. The ratio of the sequence 1.618 is know as the perfect proportion for creating balanced and eye pleasing art and architecture.
The sunflowers spiral uses the same spiral that forms inside a golden rectangle.
Is it Really Beauty?
People say that the golden rectangle is pleasing to the eye, why? It actually has to do with our ability to see the image.
First, Adrian Bejan, professor of mechanical engineering at Duke's Pratt School of Engineering found that “Whatever is designed along the horizontal planes, like the golden rectangle, the human eye not only assimilates it quickly but also appreciates its artistry and innovation, because it grasps the patterns and the intricacies of the image immediately.” This shows that because of being on the horizontal planes the golden ratio is easy for our eyes to look at quickly. We can understand the image we are seeing and can appreciate its beauty.
Second, the easiest proportion for the eye to understand is a rectangular shape with a horizontal side that’s about one and a half times bigger than the vertical. These are the proportions of the golden ratio. It is pleasurable when it is easy to understand what we are seeing. This means, the golden ratio is the proportion that we understand the most. Because of this our brains are “pleased” by the “easy work” they have to do to comprehend the image. So we think that the image is beautiful.
Famous renaissance paintings like the last supper use the golden rectangle to make proportions.
Furthermore, the golden ratio is the best ratio to transfer to the brain. It comes out as eye pleasing through balance and alignment. This means, the golden ratio is the easiest proportion for our brain to understand. We comprehend it as beautiful because of our ability to understand it faster.
Lastly, professor Adrian Bejan says "people feel better when they are helped. When we see the golden ratio we are helped." This means that the golden ratio helps us to understand what we are seeing. We feel pleasure in understanding. Our minds call that pleasure beauty.
The pleasure we feel when looking at an image with the golden rectangle is not just because of the pictures beauty, but it's also because of the satisfaction of understanding the picture.
Natural Golden Rectangles
Scanning
The beauty of the Golden Rectangle has a lot to do with scanning the image.
First, The golden rectangle is the shape that is the easiest for our eyes to scan. This shows that because it is easy to scan we understand it more and we are able to realize the beauty in it.
Second, shapes that resemble the golden rectangle catches our eyes when we scan an image. This means that the golden rectangle is more appealing than the images around it because it catches our eye. The golden rectangle makes us focus on it and see the beauty in it.
Why do we scan side to side? Adrian Bejan, professor of mechanical engineering at Duke's Pratt School of Engineering compares what happened to humans in ancient times to a gazelle “For the gazelle, danger primarily comes from the sides or from behind, not from above or below, so their scope of vision evolved to go side-to-side.” This means that we scan more efficiently when we look side to side because we evolved to sense danger from the sides. Our vision became more alert and focused on the sides.
Leonardo Da Vinci used the golden rectangle in the mona lisa to make her perfectly proportioned face.
The golden rectangle allows us to understand what we are seeing. That understanding increases the beauty of the image.
Advertisement logos use the golden rectangle to appeal to customers.
Nature
why the golden rectangle matters in nature.
Nature evolves according to the same patterns that are in the golden rectangle. For example, when sunflowers, pineapples, roses, and many other living things grow, they all use the same proportions found in the golden rectangle. These growth patterns reflect the numbers in the Fibonacci sequence. An example of this is if you count the number of petals on a rose, you will most likely find numbers that are part of the Fibonacci sequence such as 5, 8, or 13.
The golden rectangle relates to all aspects of nature. The golden rectangle enhances the beauty of nature.
“The phenomenon of the golden ratio contributes to this understanding the idea that pattern and diversity coexist as integral and necessary features of the evolutionary design of nature.”
Golden
The golden rectangle influences the way we perceive things in everyday life, but many people don't know what it is. It has been important to our art history since the renaissance. People should learn more about the golden rectangle and art to realize what true beauty is.
Work Cited
"Golden Ratio: Nature's Key To Perfect Design!" Golden Ratio: Nature's Key To Perfect Design! N.p., 21 July 2014. Web. 17 June 2016.
"Mystery of the Golden Ratio Explained." Duke University. N.p., 21 Dec. 2009. Web.
Connor, Steve. "Why Some Shapes Are More Pleasing to the Eye than Others." The Independent. Independent Digital News and Media, 21 Dec. 2009. Web. 17 June 2016.
McVeigh, Karen. "Why Golden Ratio Pleases the Eye: US Academic Says He Knows Art Secret." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 28 Dec. 2009. Web. 17 June 2016
Created with images by georigami - "Golden Rectangle with a Fibonacci Series" • The Marmot - "Golden Section"