Aging and the Perception of Color in Art

In recent years, there has been an increased interest in the effects of aging on color perception. However, the relationship between age and the perception of color in artwork remains unknown. One theory offers that aging causes yellowing in the crystalline lens of the eye, which leads older people to view artwork with an exaggerated yellow tone. One way to address this question would be to determine whether aging is associated with the perception of a yellow tone in artwork. To test this, subjects, ages 18-80, were given an online questionnaire. They rated 5 artworks from the Student Lending Art Collection at MIT based on how blue or yellow they perceived them to be. Some paintings included noticeably yellow and blue objects. We found a moderately positive correlation between the perceived yellow tone of the artwork and the age of the subject. By understanding how older audiences view their art, artists can use these findings to modify their colors, such as strengthening blue tones, to achieve their desired effects.