How can the new insights about the human subconscious improve designed experiences?

FROG DESIGN
DESIGN STRATEGY

Neuroaesthetics &
Design Feeling

A new type of design framework that puts human emotions at the center of the creative process by studying how human body reacts to arts and designed experiences.

  • Neuroaesthetics is a newly emerging discipline that studies the effects of art and designed experiences on human physiology.

    As a design consultancy that started with the mantra “form follows emotion” Frog Design was in a great place to lead the conversation on how Neuroaesthetics can inform next-generation physical and digital experiences.

  • I worked with designers and leaders from multiple disciplines to study how Neuroaesthetics principles can be integrated into their processes.

    Created a deck to communicate the vision and layout the strategy for integrating neuroaesthetics into design and business development processes.

  • Track Lead
    Strategy
    Internal training & presentations

  • David Jalbert-Gagnier - Creative Director

Neuroaesthetics is delving into understanding how art and designed experiences tangibly influence our emotions, physical well-being, and mental state in ways that often elude our conscious awareness. In other words, our bodies have their own minds, and they feel all the time.

Graphics by: Amanda Guereca

Considering that 80% of our perception of the world is tied to our subconscious (the information we absorb through channels beyond rational thought), there's much to gain from understanding our true emotional responses while designing human experiences. While artists and designers may inherently grasp what feels right, bridging intuition with data has proven challenging – a necessity to convince "left-brained" business individuals tasked with selecting viable design solutions.

With insights from Neuroaesthetics studies, we've gained a deeper understanding of how designed experiences affect both our bodies and minds, fundamentally shaping our perception of the world and influencing decision-making. Armed with this insight, can we reimagine some of the existing frameworks and methodologies to better harness emotions?

How we perceive aesthetic experiences involves three major physiological systems. First, the sensory-motor systems process external stimuli through our senses: sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell. The second one is, emotional reactions. When we appreciate an artwork or an experience, our emotions trigger hormonal changes and activate the brain's reward systems, similar to our responses to food, or sex. Lastly, the semantic systems, encompass our knowledge, sense of self, and past experiences that influence our perception.

What does “design thinking” evolve to when we put human emotions at the center of the creative (and business) processes? Can we involve poets, painters, musicians - people who are more connected to their emotions - to our ideation and creation processes? What do the phases that traditionally facilitated contexting, ideating, and testing transform to - when we prioritize how designed experiences leave us “feeling”?

Designing for the Subconscious
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