What is the "science of aesthetics?"

A philosophy of art, now scientifically rooted, that addresses embracing the beautiful and the repellent as equally important in art. Where the same part of the brain reacts to both that which is socially accepted as "ugly" and "beautiful."

Example: The realm of visual art contains some compelling examples of works relevant to the properties of the brain. Piet Mondrian's famous compositions of primary colors on white canvases separated by black, horizontal, and vertical lines were the artist's attempt to uncover the essence of form.

Years after Mondrian created his works, neurobiologists discovered orientation-selective cells, cells in the brain that only react to straight lines. Scientists now consider orientation-selective cells as the most basic components of form perception.

"This is why I believe that artists are, in a sense, neurologists who unknowingly study the brain with techniques unique to them," wrote Zeki.