Neuroesthetics

Neuroesthetics is a relatively recent subdiscipline of empirical aesthetics. Empirical aesthetics take a scientific approach to the study of aesthetic perceptions of art and music. Neuroesthetics uses the techniques of neuroscience in order to explain and understand the esthetic experiences at the neurological level. The field was pioneered and named by Semir Zeki, who runs the Institute of Neuroesthetics at University College London.

Zeki suggests that "...the artist is in a sense, a neuroscientist, exploring the potentials and capacities of the brain, though with different tools. How such creations can arouse aesthetic experiences can only be fully understood in neural terms. Such an understanding is now well within our reach." 

Neuroesthetics investigates the structure and activity of the brain in response to experiences of esthetic phenomena. Steady advances in neuroimaging tools such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and in genetic analysis have contributed to advances in neuroesthetic knowledge. For example, one neuroesthetic study showed that humans prefer images of faces when the gaze is directed towards the viewer (Kampe et al, 2001).