Martin Skov

Curved background and foreground elements enhance the appeal of indoor spaces Architects have long assumed that curvature enhances positive emotional and aesthetic experiences of architectural spaces. While empirical evidence fo…

Our latest paper on how curvature shapes the experience of architectural interiors 🏛️ is out in the Journal of Environmental Psychology 🚀
🔗 doi.org/10.1016/j.je...
#Neuroaesthetics #Architecture #Perception

Welcome to the IAEA Aesthetics Conference 2026 in Jena!

We are delighted to announce that the International Association for Empirical Aesthetics (IAEA) will hold its next international conference in Jena, Germany, from 5th to 8th May.
Discover more at iaea-jena2026.org (link in bio)

𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗱𝗼 𝗿𝗲𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀 (𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲) 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺?
Implications for reinforcement learning.
Very interesting paper.
doi.org/10.1016/j.ti...
#neuroskyence

Against a “Lego perspective” on art and health interventions: comment on “Can arts-based interventions improve health? A conceptual and methodological critique” by Martin Skov & Marcos Nadal

Antoni Rodríguez-Fornells, Jennifer Grau-Sánchez, & Clément François:

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Out today! www.nature.com/articles/s41...

To Punch Down or to Build Up: Comment on “Can Arts-Based Interventions Improve Health? A Conceptual and Methodological critique “ by Skov & Nadal

Ed Vessel:

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Progress is Typically Incremental: Comment on "Can Arts-based Interventions Improve Health? A Conceptual and Methodological Critique" by Martin Skov and Marcos Nadal

Oshin Vartanian:

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

What if animals find beauty in the world, just like we do?

Brief article in Psyche:
psyche.co/ideas/what-i...

Comment on 'Can arts-based interventions improve health? A conceptual and methodological critique' by Skov and Nadal - A critique of the critique: Towards a more nuanced evaluation of current research...

Vicky Karkou, Pier Luigi Sacco, Matthew Pelowski, Constantina Theofanopoulou, Catherine Carr, Val Huet, Jane Bourne, Robyn Dowlen & Helen Chatterjee:

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Arts-based interventions: Why It’s Complex, and Why That Matters: Comment on “Can arts-based interventions improve health? A conceptual and methodological critique” by Martin Skov and Marcos Nadal

Nicola Holt:

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Insights from tradition: Comment on “Can arts-based interventions improve health? A conceptual and methodological critique” by Martin Skov and Marcos Nadal

Sloka Iyengar:

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Can we learn from the arts about health?: Comment on Can arts-based interventions improve health? A conceptual and methodological critique by Martin Skov and Marcos Nadal

Gunter Kreutz:

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Dirk B. Walther:

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

There is more to arts and health than neural mechanisms: A Critique of Evidence Dismissal in Arts and Health: Comment on “Can arts-based interventions improve health? A conceptual and methodological c...

Claire Howlin:

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

The need for a critical perspective on arts and health research and reviews. Comment on “Can arts-based interventions improve health? A conceptual and methodological critique” by Martin Skov and Marco...

Stephen Clift and Katarzyna Grebosz-Haring:

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Can arts-based interventions improve health? A conceptual and methodological critique Can art improve health and wellbeing? The claim that there is strong evidence that engaging with art ameliorates symptoms of mental and physical disor…

Commentaries for Marcos Nadal's and my recent paper "Can arts-based interventions improve health? A conceptual and methodological critique" have begun to roll in. To keep track of them I am starting this thread.

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Neural correlates of negative aesthetic evaluations in visual art: a neuroimaging meta-analysis Abstract. Neuroaesthetics has focused on investigating positive aesthetic evaluations while neglecting negative aesthetic evaluations. The employment of do

Very nice meta-analysis of the neural correlates of negative aesthetic judgments from Zaira Cattaneo's lab.
academic.oup.com/cercor/artic...

There is more to arts and health than neural mechanisms: A Critique of Evidence Dismissal in Arts and Health: Comment on “Can arts-based interventions improve health? A conceptual and methodological c...

Here's a link to freely access my recent comment on debates in arts and health research.

Yes free.

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Can arts-based interventions improve health? A conceptual and methodological critique Can art improve health and wellbeing? The claim that there is strong evidence that engaging with art ameliorates symptoms of mental and physical disor…

@mskov01.bsky.social and @mnadal.bsky.social recently reviewed arts-based interventions:
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

I got the opportunity to write a comment:
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

TLDR: ABIs hold some promise but must be tested with the same rigor as other treatments.

David Huron (1954-2025), pioneer in music cognition. He will be missed! No words (but music): www.mcg.uva.nl/symposium/pr...

For #InternationalDanceDay, a new paper out on @cp-iscience.bsky.social entitled: “Toward a neuroaesthetics of interactions: Insights from dance on the aesthetics of individual and interacting bodies”. A big thanks to Prof. Matteo Candidi. 🧠🕺🏻👥 #neuroaesthetics #review

www.cell.com/iscience/ful...

The published version is now out in the recent issue of Physics of Life Reviews. Stay tuned for a round of commentaries + a response from @mnadal.bsky.social and I.

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Thought-provoking new study from @giacomobignardi.bsky.social et al.

💃🧠 Psyched to share my latest paper in Neuron on the past, present and future of dance neuroscience research! Crazy to think where this field will be in 20 more years 🚀

authors.elsevier.com/a/1kkh3_KOmx...

#PsychSciSky #neuroskyence #Dance #CognitiveNeuroscience #Neuroaesthetics #BrainScience

The pre-proofed version can now be retrieved from PsyArXiv:

osf.io/preprints/ps...

Can arts-based interventions improve health? A conceptual and methodological critique Can art improve health and wellbeing? The claim that there is strong evidence that engaging with art ameliorates symptoms of mental and physical disor…

"Can arts-based interventions improve health? A conceptual and methodological critique" by @mnadal.bsky.social and I has been accepted for publication in Physics of Life Reviews.

The pre-proof version is online at the following URL:
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Nature exposure induces analgesic effects by acting on nociception-related neural processing - Nature Communications Virtual nature exposure reduces self-reported pain and is associated with decreased brain responses linked to somatosensory and nociceptive processing, providing new insights into the underlying mecha...

"Healthy participants (N = 49) receiving electrical shocks report lower pain when exposed to virtual nature compared to matched urban or indoor control settings".

Cool new imaging study by Steininger et al.

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Congrats, Aenne!

The human reward system encodes the subjective value of ideas during creative thinking - Communications Biology Creativity and rating tasks in fMRI help unpack the evaluation process of creative thinking, revealing its neural substrates and shedding light on the link between individual preferences and creative ...

Communications Biology

The human reward system encodes the subjective value of ideas during creative thinking
www.nature.com/articles/s42...

I invite you to attend the Toronto Aesthetics Sciences Conference (TASC) at @uc-uoft.bsky.social on April 8th, 2025.
Registration is free but required.
sites.google.com/view/tasc2025/

Please join us for a day of nerding out over empirical aesthetics!

@uoftpsychology.bsky.social @uoft.bsky.social