Children's preferences of the colour composition of art paintings

Colour composition is acknowledged as a key contributor to aesthetic evaluation in visual art. Adult observers tend to prefer colour compositions that are particularly close to the original, regardless of the painting's category or the observer's cultural background. In this study, we examined whether children aged 5–12 years expressed a preference for the colour composition of original paintings using three scene types: abstract, figure, and botanical. The children each selected one of their preferred images from the paintings with four different colour compositions, including the original hue. A preference for the colour compositions of original figure paintings emerged between the ages of 5 and 8, and a similar preference for abstract and botanical paintings emerged between the ages of 9 and 12. Thus, preferences regarding colour composition in paintings are gradually acquired from childhood to adulthood.

Highlights

• Children aged 9–12 years showed a preference for colour compositions closer to the originals, as did adults.
• Children aged 5–8 years showed no particular colour preference for abstract or botanical paintings but did show a preference for figure paintings that were closest to the original with respect to colour composition.
• Preferences for original colour composition in painting develop gradually from childhood to adulthood.