Significances and Aesthetic Values of Straight Lines

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Abstract

The straight line is an important element of visual language. This type of line is generally less studied, and the dedicated literature contains mainly theoretical assertions. The present paper presents the results of a complex experiment that had as general objective the investigation of straight line in terms of significance and aesthetic value. Following the application of different statistical methods, the following conclusions were reached: a) a general significance cannot be associated with every straight line, and in the few cases when an associated significance was outlined, the correlation was of medium intensity; b) people prefer associations with concrete elements to the detriment of abstract elements; c) the characteristics of the line that condition the aesthetic evaluation are: the length, the inclination, the position within the observed space and the number of space edges reached; d) the straight line with a high aesthetic content is long, centrally placed, touches two edges and is not inclined (with one notable exception); e) the associated significance (word or phrase) is the one that imposes the positive or negative appreciation of the straight line.