How can seeing different sorts of art influence viewer creativity? Heruti and Mashal endeavor to answer this question. They “examined whether creative thinking improves by utilizing an intervention program based on three types of ambiguous image-text interactions within artwork: (1) ambiguous text, (2) negation, and (3) semantically unrelated image-text. . . . The metaphor generation test (MGT) and Tel-Aviv creative test (TACT) were given pre- and post-intervention. The results showed the ‘ambiguous-negation-unrelated’ intervention group [exposed to stimuli 1, 2, and 3] scored higher on the TACT post-intervention, as compared to pre-intervention, a finding not observed among the ‘ambiguous-unrelated’ [exposed to stimuli 1 and 3] and control groups. Furthermore, both art intervention groups generated more utterances overall (literal, conventional, and novel metaphors) in the MGT post-intervention, as compared to pre-intervention. These outcomes suggest this artwork intervention that utilized ambiguous image-text interactions and included theoretical discussion and reflective analysis can enhance divergent thinking.” The images shown to study participants can be seen at the website noted in the reference below.
Vered Heruti and Nira Mashal. 2023. “Effects of an Art Intervention Program Using Ambiguous Image-Text Interactions on Creative Thinking.” Empirical Studies of the Arts, https://doi.org/10.1177/02762374231215736