The Role of Emotions in Sense-Making with Art: An Interdisciplinary Study

According to Dewey (1934), experiences such as encounters with artworks emerge from participatory interactions with the environment, where meaning is derived. This engagement involves senses, organs, and nervous and muscular systems, exemplifying the interplay between individuals and their surroundings. Drawing from Dewey's concepts, this study used a mixed and multi-method approach to examine the role of emotions in the sense-making process with art. Thirty-six participants took part in the study in dyads and were instructed to each bring an artwork that was meaningful to them. During the experiment, the dyads engaged in an audio-visually recorded semi-structured conversation in which they reflected on both artworks and answered pre- and post-questionnaires. Data were collected from the questionnaires, interviews, and body movements. Sense-making was coded in terms of the four semiotic strategies perception, imagination, conceptualisation and analysis (van Heusden, 2015) from conversational data. The dynamics of the strategy use, emotion, and movements during the art conversations will be explored through nonlinear time series analysis techniques, specifically cross-recurrence quantification analysis (CRQA). The aim is to address the following main research question: Do art conversations show complex patterns of dyadic synchronisation in emotion, behaviour, and use of semiotic strategies?