Eugene Surowitz Assistant Professor Edward Vessel has been awarded a three-year grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for his project, “Combining Category Learning with Machine Vision Models to Test Aesthetic Valuation.” The project explores how people make value judgments about visual objects and images — whether evaluating the design of a laptop, the beauty of a public space, or AI-generated artwork — and why these judgments differ so widely from person to person.
Using advanced machine learning and AI techniques, Vessel’s research investigates how aesthetic valuations relate to individuals’ internal knowledge and lived experiences. Beyond advancing theoretical understanding, the project has practical implications for designing public spaces, workplaces, hospitals, and arts-based therapies for mental and physical health. It also includes student training in AI and machine learning applications within the behavioral sciences, helping to cultivate the next generation of AI-literate researchers and professionals.
Professor Vessel’s research on visual neuroaesthetics has been gaining relevance on par with AI. This past summer, we announced his Osher Fellowship from the California Academy of Sciences, where he will be using his visual neuroaesthetics framework to analyze photos from the Academy’s Big Picture competition, which promotes climate action through conservation photography.
Professor Vessel is also the director of the Visual NeuroAesthetics Lab (VisNA) at CCNY, a research hub dedicated to the study of the psychological and neural basis of aesthetic experiences, such as when a person is aesthetically “moved” by visual art, poetry, architecture, music, or natural landscapes. Much of the research relies on brain imaging (fMRI, EEG) and behavioral techniques, as well as computational tools (e.g. machine learning), measurements of physiology, and eye tracking.
