PERCEPTION THEORY SUMMARY

What does “to see” mean in fashion and visual communication?

In fashion/visual communication, “to see” means more than receiving an image. It means:

the body detects visual stimuli (light, color, contrast, form)
the brain interprets them (style, identity, mood, meaning)
interpretation is shaped by context, experience, expectations, culture

So “seeing” is both sensory (eyes) and cognitive (meaning).

1) Sensation vs Perception

Sensation - body (definition + easy meaning)

SENSATION: the ability to detect a stimulus (light, sound, taste, etc.) and transform that detection into a private experience.

Very simple: sensation is noticing something is there.

Eyes detect light
Ears detect sound
Skin detects heat/cold
(and so on)

✅ Sensation is automatic and physical.

Examples

You see red.
You hear a loud noise.
You feel cold.

That is sensation.

Perception - brain (definition + easy meaning)

PERCEPTION: the interpretation of basic stimuli and sensations — giving meaning to what was detected.

Very simple: perception is understanding what it means.

✅ Perception is mental and subjective (can differ across people).

Examples

Red → “danger”, “love”, “trend”, “luxury brand color”
Loud noise → “music” or “alarm”
Cold → “winter”, “fresh”, “elegant cool tone”

Perfect exam sentence

Sensation = detecting a stimulus. Perception = giving meaning to that stimulus.

2) Psychophysics

What is psychophysics?

Psychophysics is the science that defines the quantitative relationship between:

physical events (energy/matter: light intensity, sound intensity, weight)
and
psychological experiences (brightness, loudness, heaviness)

In simple terms:

It studies how the outside stimulus becomes a personal experience.

It also asks:

How much a stimulus need to change for us to notice a difference?

3) Weber & Fechner (core of psychophysics)

Weber: noticing differences (weights etc.)

Weber studied how people detect differences between stimuli (classic example: weight).

Key discovery

We do not notice changes by absolute amount.
We notice changes by relative change (proportions).

Just Noticeable Difference (JND)

JND = smallest difference you can perceive between two stimuli.

Differential Threshold

Differential threshold = another name for JND
(the minimum change needed to notice a difference).

Weber’s observation (important example)

Holding 100 g → you might notice +10 g
Holding 1 kg → you need a much larger change (example: +100 g) to notice

Meaning:

Sensitivity depends on proportion, not exact grams/numbers.

Weber’s Law (formula + meaning)

ΔΦ = K × Φ

Where:

ΔΦ = JND (needed change)
Φ = original stimulus intensity
K = Weber’s constant (depends on stimulus type)

Meaning:

The stronger the stimulus, the bigger the change must be to notice it.
So: strong stimulus → less sensitivity.

Fechner: how sensation grows

Fechner expanded Weber by building a psychological scale linking stimulus to sensation.

Fechner’s key idea

Small “barely noticeable” changes can add up to explain bigger perceptual differences.

Also:

very low intensity → low threshold
as intensity rises → threshold rises too

Fechner’s Law (formula + meaning)

S = c · log Φ

Where:

S = sensation (subjective experience)
Φ = stimulus intensity
c = constant

Meaning:

Sensation increases logarithmically, not linearly.
So when physical intensity increases, sensation increases more slowly.

Example

In a dark room, a small light increase is obvious.
In a bright room, the same increase is barely noticed.

Absolute Threshold (also required)

Absolute threshold = minimum stimulus that can be detected at all.

Below this:

no conscious sensation
you do not notice it (too dim, too quiet, etc.)

4) Methods to measure thresholds and perception

Psychophysics uses experiments to measure the stimulus–sensation relationship.

1. Method of Constant Stimuli

Many stimulus intensities shown in random order
Person answers “yes/no”
Near threshold responses vary a lot
Threshold = stimulus detected 50% of the time

2. Method of Limits

Stimulus intensity increases or decreases
Person says when they start noticing (ascending)
or stop noticing (descending)
Threshold = average of those transition points

3. Method of Adjustment

Person controls intensity and stops at “just noticeable”
✅ fast
❌ less precise (depends on judgment)

4. Method of Magnitude Estimation

People assign numbers to sensations (e.g., “twice as strong”)
People differ in numbers, but show strong consistency in scaling

5) Stevens’ Power Law (1956)

Stevens argued sensation isn’t always logarithmic (Fechner).
Different senses scale differently.

Formula
S = c · Φᵇ

Where:

S = perceived sensation
Φ = stimulus intensity
c = constant
b = exponent (depends on sense)

Examples

Sound: doubling energy ≠ twice as loud
Pain: small stimulus increase → large perceived pain
Length: doubling length = perceived exactly twice as long

6) Signal Detection Theory (Green & Swets, 1966)

This explains detection when signal is mixed with noise.

Key point:

Perception depends not only on the stimulus, but also on the observer’s expectations and decision strategy.

People decide: “Is it a real signal or just noise?”

Two measures from repeated trials

Sensitivity (d′)

How well someone distinguishes signal from noise:

High d′ = easy detection
Low d′ = hard to tell apart

Response Criterion (β)

How cautious/risky the person is:

Conservative: says “yes” only when sure
→ fewer false alarms, more misses
Liberal: says “yes” often
→ more hits but also more false alarms

7) Neuroscience & Neuroimaging techniques

Structural techniques (anatomy/morphology)

Used to see shape, lesions, tumors, etc.

MRI
CT / CAT scan

Functional techniques (activity in real time)

Used to study the brain during tasks

fMRI
PET
EEG
MEG

8) Computational Models of Perception (brain as “information processor”)

Computational models explain perception like a system:

Input

Visual info entering the system:

color, shape, patterns, silhouettes

Processing

Brain applies:

rules, prior knowledge, context
This is why the same image can be perceived differently.

Output

Final interpretation:

recognizing a style, identity, aesthetic

Applications in fashion (from your notes)

Automatic image analysis: trends, silhouettes, recurring patterns
Simulations of color perception/contrast: which combinations attract attention
Digital moodboards: software suggests coherent visual combinations based on perception principles

9) Bayesian Models of Perception (perception as probability)

Main idea:

The brain does not just receive info. It combines prior knowledge with new evidence to choose the most likely interpretation.

Prior Knowledge

Past experiences + culture + familiar styles/logos/silhouettes

Evidence

Current visual input: outfit, pattern, color, context

How the process works (4 steps)

Hypothesis creation: brain forms possible interpretations + probabilities
Stimulus processing: checks how well evidence fits each hypothesis
Belief updating: combines priors + evidence → “posterior” (updated belief)
Surprise reduction: goal is to reduce uncertainty by choosing most plausible interpretation

Applications in fashion

Style/identity recognition: brain “bets” on familiar cues (logos, iconic silhouettes)
Complex layered looks: context/expectations become crucial
Marketing: campaigns aligned with priors → easier brand recognition (“perceptual hits”)

10) Neural Networks and perception

Neural networks model how sensory systems learn through experience.
They are inspired by brain structure.

Structure (layers)

Input layer → receives data
Hidden layers → process through weighted connections
Output layer → final classification/response

Learning

Weights change through error correction:

prediction differs from correct output → error calculated → weights updated

Types

With/without feedback: recurrent vs feedforward
Supervised learning: trained with labeled data
Unsupervised learning: finds patterns itself

Deep learning (extension)

Many hidden layers allow:

processing complex patterns
recognizing shape/texture/styles
modelling sophisticated perceptual tasks

11) Nervous system overview

Two main parts:

Central Nervous System (CNS)

brain + spinal cord
Processing + decisions

Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)

nerves + ganglia throughout the body
Carries:
sensory info → to brain
motor commands → from brain

12) Brain + cortex + lobes

Major structures

cerebrum (largest)
cerebellum (coordination/balance)
brainstem (vital functions like breathing)

Two hemispheres communicate and control opposite body sides.

Cerebral cortex (outer grey matter)

Responsible for higher functions:

perception, reasoning, language, decisions

Lobes

Frontal: planning, decision-making, voluntary movement
Parietal: sensory processing, spatial awareness
Temporal: hearing, language, memory
Occipital: visual processing

Gyri/sulci increase surface area for complex processing.

13) Visual area in the brain

Located in occipital lobe.

Primary visual cortex (V1)

Basic visual processing:

light, edges, orientation

Visual association areas

Higher interpretation:

recognizing shapes, objects, faces

Important idea:

Visual perception takes time: eye → optic nerve → visual cortex → meaningful image.

14) Physiology of vision — physics of light

Waves or photons?

Sunlight appears achromatic (white/slightly yellow).
Light is made of photons (particles), also describable as packets of electromagnetic waves.

Think of light as waves while it travels
Think of it as photons when absorbed

15) The eye (complete but simple)

The eye captures and processes light to create images.

At the back: retina, with photoreceptors that convert light → electrical signals → brain.

Focusing light onto retina (structures)

Cornea: transparent curved front; refracts light (first focusing lens)
Iris: colored ring; controls pupil size
Pupil: opening like camera aperture (more light in dark, less in bright)
Lens: fine-tunes focus; changes shape (accommodation) for distance

Retina special regions

Fovea

center of macula
highest density of photoreceptors (especially cones)
sharp detail + color
point of fixation (where you look directly)

Optic disc

where optic nerve exits
no photoreceptors
creates blind spot
brain “fills in” normally so we don’t notice

16) Photoreceptors + light transduction (full info)

Cones

sharp detail, color, bright light
concentrated in fovea
3 types: sensitive to ranges often described as blue, green, red
→ allows wide color spectrum

Rods

very sensitive to low light
dim conditions
not for color or fine detail

Light transduction

When light hits photoreceptors:

chemical change triggers a cascade of neural events
generates visual signals

Photoreceptors send signals through synaptic terminals to other retinal neurons.

Visual pigments (important)

Produced in inner segment, stored in outer segment.

A pigment has:

Protein (determines which wavelengths are absorbed)
Chromophore (captures photons and starts the chemical reaction)

17) From the eye to the CNS (visual pathway)

Light hits retina → rods/cones convert to electrical signals
Signals travel through the optic nerve
At the optic chiasm: fibers from inner halves cross, outer halves stay
→ left visual field processed by right hemisphere, right field by left
Signals go via optic tract to LGN in thalamus (relay/organization station)
Then via optic radiations to primary visual cortex (V1) in occipital lobe
V1 processes edges, lines, contrast, simple shapes → conscious vision

18) Two visual processing streams (after V1)

Dorsal stream = “WHERE / HOW”

Occipital → parietal

where objects are
movement
how to act on them (grasp, reach)

Ventral stream = “WHAT”

Occipital → temporal

object recognition
shape, color, texture
faces

19) Face perception (special network)

Because faces are socially crucial, we have specialized processing.

Core system (visual analysis)

Inferior occipital gyrus: basic facial features (eyes/nose/mouth)
Fusiform Face Area (FFA): identity / stable features
Superior temporal sulcus (STS): dynamic features (gaze, expressions, lip movement)

Extended system (meaning/context)

Amygdala + insula: emotions in faces
Anterior temporal cortex: names/biographical info
Medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC): personality/intentions
Precuneus/posterior cingulate: autobiographical memory
Motor areas: simulate expressions → empathy/understanding emotions

20) Brain imaging evidence

fMRI studies show the FFA activates much more for faces than for objects like houses or chairs → evidence for functional specialization.

THE ORGANIZING PRINCIPLES OF GESTALT

Core idea of Gestalt psychology

“The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.”

This means that:

We do not perceive isolated elements one by one.
Our nervous system is innately predisposed to organize sensory input into patterns, structures, and wholes.
This organization follows basic rules, called principles of perceptual organization.

In design and fashion, this explains why we instantly perceive:

outfits as “coherent”
layouts as “balanced”
images as “confusing” or “clear”

Gestalt Principles of Perceptual Organization

1. Proximity

Definition:
Elements that are close to each other are perceived as belonging to the same group.

How the brain works:
Distance is used as a cue for grouping.

Example:
If many dots are scattered on a page, but some are closer together, we automatically see those dots as one group or “block,” even if they look identical to the others.

Design meaning:
Spacing creates relationships (e.g. grouped text, accessories, patterns).

2. Similarity

Definition:
Elements that share similar characteristics are perceived as related.

Similarity can be based on:

color
shape
size
orientation
texture

Example:
In a mix of black and white circles, all black circles are perceived as one group, even if they are spread out.

Design meaning:
Repeated colors or shapes create unity and visual identity.

3. Closure

Definition:
The mind tends to complete incomplete shapes, filling in missing parts to perceive a whole.

How the brain works:
We prefer complete, stable forms, even if information is missing.

Example:
A circle with gaps is still perceived as a complete circle.

Design meaning:
Logos and fashion graphics can suggest forms without fully drawing them.

4. Continuity

Definition:
We perceive lines and patterns as smoothly continuing, following the simplest path.

How the brain works:
The visual system avoids abrupt changes and prefers continuous flow.

Example:
When two lines cross, we see two continuous lines intersecting, not many broken segments.

Design meaning:
Guides the viewer’s eye through layouts, silhouettes, and visual rhythms.

5. Common Fate (Common Movement)

Definition:
Elements that move together in the same direction and at the same speed are perceived as a group.

Example:
A flock of birds flying together is seen as one unit, not as many separate birds.

Design meaning:
In fashion films, animations, and runways, synchronized movement creates unity.

6. Figure–Ground

Definition:
Our perception separates:

figure (foreground, main object)
ground (background)

Sometimes this distinction is ambiguous and reversible.

Example:
Rubin’s vase:

either a vase
or two faces looking at each other

Design meaning:
Strong figure–ground contrast makes designs readable; ambiguity creates visual interest.

7. Prägnanz (Law of Good Form)

Also called:

law of simplicity
law of symmetry
law of order

Definition:
Among many possible interpretations, the mind prefers the simplest, most regular, and most symmetrical one.

Example:
The Olympic rings are perceived as five complete overlapping circles, not as complex broken shapes.

Design meaning:
Simple, balanced designs are easier to perceive and remember.

Why Gestalt principles matter in design & fashion

They help designers:

Create more visually appealing products
Make designs easier to understand
Achieve cohesion and unity

➡ Result: designs that catch the eye naturally.

Perceptual Ambiguity

Perceptual ambiguity happens when an image can be interpreted in more than one way.

Composite figures

Images whose parts can be organized differently depending on attention.

Example:
The image that can be seen as:

a young woman
or an old woman

The perception changes depending on which details we focus on.

Key idea:
The brain actively chooses an interpretation—it does not passively record images.

Perceptual Constancy

Despite constant changes in sensory input, we perceive objects as stable and consistent.

The retinal image:

changes all the time (distance, angle, light)
But perception:
remains stable

Important idea:
The brain actively interprets stimuli using:

context
experience
prior knowledge

Types of Perceptual Constancy

1. Size Constancy

Definition:
We perceive an object as the same size, even when its distance changes.

How the brain does it:

Uses context (surroundings, perspective)
Uses depth cues (shadows, convergence)
Uses prior knowledge (people don’t shrink)

Example:
A person walking away looks smaller on the retina, but we perceive them as the same size.

2. Shape Constancy

Definition:
We recognize objects as having the same shape, even from different angles.

How the brain does it:

Uses perspective and spatial relations
Relies on memory (doors are rectangular, plates are round)

Example:
A round plate seen at an angle projects an oval image, but we still perceive it as round.

3. Color Constancy

Definition:
Objects are perceived as having the same color, even under different lighting.

How the brain does it:

Compares the object with its surroundings
Uses experience (paper is white)
Applies color normalization

Example:
A white shirt looks white in sunlight and artificial light, even though reflected wavelengths differ.

Perception of Space and Depth

We experience the world as three-dimensional, but:

The retina is two-dimensional
Objects at different distances can project images on the same plane

So depth is not directly given.

Depth perception is possible because:

We move and see multiple views
The brain compares changing perspectives
Visual cues are integrated over time

➡ Depth is constructed by the brain, not recorded by the retina.

Visual Illusions: Theories and Interpretations

Visual illusions occur when perception does not match physical reality.

1. Eye Movement Theory

Illusions are caused by eye movements while exploring an image.

Structural elements guide eye motion
Eye movement may exceed actual boundaries

Result:
Objects appear longer, curved, or distorted.

2. Physiological Theories

Focus on the biology of the visual system.

Orientation-selective receptors respond to angles and lines
Competing orientations influence each other

Result:
Distortions in length, angle, or direction.

3. Field Theories (Gestalt approach)

Perception depends on the overall visual field.

Conflicting elements create imbalance
Brain reorganizes the field to restore balance

Key idea:
Illusions result from the mind’s attempt to create a stable perceptual structure.

4. Perspective Theory

Illusions come from misapplied depth and constancy rules.

2D cues are interpreted as 3D depth
Brain applies size/depth constancy even when misleading

Examples:

Ponzo illusion: converging lines suggest depth → identical lines look different
Müller-Lyer illusion: arrowheads imply perspective → line lengths seem unequal

FINAL EXAM SENTENCE (VERY USEFUL)

Gestalt principles explain how the visual system organizes elements into coherent wholes, resolves ambiguity, maintains perceptual constancy, and sometimes produces illusions as a result of its attempt to create stable and meaningful perception.

NEWTON (1643–1727) AND THE PRISM (1666)

Before Newton (what people believed)

Before the 17th century, many people thought:

White light was pure
Color was created by objects or by glass (like prisms)

So they believed:

color is added to light (by objects or prisms), not already inside light.

Newton’s prism experiment (what he did)

Newton took a ray of sunlight (which looks white) and passed it through a glass prism.

What happened:

the white light split into a band of colors:
red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet

This band is the spectrum.

Newton’s second test (the key proof)

Newton then took only one color from the spectrum (example: red) and passed it through a second prism.

Result:

the red light stayed red
it did not split into new colors

Newton’s conclusion (what it proved)

This proved three crucial things:

The prism does not create color
White light already contains all colors
A prism only separates colors that are already present

So:

Color is a property of light itself.

✅ Important extra point:
Newton explained what light is made of (the spectrum),
but he did not explain how humans perceive color.

That part came later (19th century).

HOW HUMANS PERCEIVE COLOR (19th century)

1) Trichromatic Theory of Color (Young & Helmholtz)

Main idea

The human eye does not detect each wavelength separately. Instead:

the retina has three types of cone cells
each cone type responds best to a different range of light:
Red, Green, Blue

That’s why it’s called trichromatic:

tri = three

How color perception happens

When light enters the eye:

Each cone type is stimulated more or less strongly
The brain compares the three cone responses
From the combination, we perceive a color

Examples

Yellow light → strongly stimulates red + green cones, weakly blue
Purple → stimulates red + blue, little green

✅ Big conclusion:

Color exists in the brain, not in the object itself.

Objects don’t “contain” color as a thing — they shape the light that reaches your cones.

2) James Clerk Maxwell (1861): proving trichromacy

Maxwell worked from the idea that:

the retina has three cone types (R, G, B ranges)

What he did

He used:

three projectors
with red, green, blue filters
He projected them onto a white screen, overlapping them.

By changing the intensity of each beam, he could reproduce any visible color.

What this showed

This was the birth of additive color synthesis:

All perceived colors can be recreated by combining red + green + blue light.

Maxwell also confirmed:

the eye doesn’t perceive every wavelength separately, but as combinations of the 3 cone responses.

This begins the science of color measurement:
Colorimetry.

OBJECT COLORS: PIGMENTS AND LIGHT

Why objects look colored (reflection + absorption)

Objects differ in color because their surfaces contain different pigments.

Pigments are chemicals that:

absorb some wavelengths of light
and reflect others

What you see is the reflected light.

Examples

A pigment that absorbs short + medium wavelengths looks red
(because only long wavelengths reflect)
A pigment that reflects only short wavelengths looks violet/blue

Subtractive mixing (pigments)

Pigments create color by subtracting wavelengths from incoming light (absorbing them).

So mixing pigments = subtractive combination.

Example (your exact example)

Blue pigment absorbs long wavelengths
Yellow pigment absorbs short wavelengths
→ only intermediate wavelengths remain reflected
→ mixture looks green

Additive mixing (lights)

The opposite is additive combination, which happens when you mix colored lights, not pigments.

Two important “laws” about mixing light

Law of three primary colors

Three lights of different wavelengths (primaries such as):

red
blue or violet
yellow or yellow-green

…when mixed in correct proportions, can reproduce any color visible to the eye.

Law of complementary colors

Some pairs of lights, when combined correctly, produce the sensation of white.

Those pairs are called complementary.

Opponent-Process Theory (Ewald Hering)

Trichromatic theory couldn’t explain everything (especially negative afterimages).

Hering proposed that color is processed in opposing pairs:

Red ↔ Green
Blue ↔ Yellow
White ↔ Black

Key mechanism

Activating one color inhibits the other.

That’s why we cannot perceive:

a “reddish-green”
or a “yellowish-blue”
at the same time.

✅ Final combined conclusion:

Trichromatic theory explains how cones detect light (retina level)
Opponent-process theory explains how the brain organizes/interprets those signals

Together they give a complete explanation of color experience.

THE APPEARANCE OF COLORS (how many colors, and how we describe them)

How many colors can humans perceive?

From only three cone types, humans can perceive:

up to about 2 million different colors (considering lightness variations)
if we ignore lightness: about 26,000 different hues

How can we describe so many colors?

1) By wavelength

Each pure color corresponds to a specific wavelength in the visible spectrum.

2) By 3D color space

We can describe colors using a three-dimensional space based on cone outputs:

derived from the three cone types (R, G, B)

3) Practical color systems used in media

Color is managed using systems like:

RGB (digital / light-based)
HSB/HSV (color pickers, design tools)
CMYK (printing / pigments)

These systems allow consistent color reproduction in:

design
fashion
visual communication

Additive vs Subtractive color models (the two lists)

Subtractive combination (printing/pigments)

CYAN
MAGENTA
YELLOW
KEY (black)

Additive combination (light/screens)

RED
GREEN
BLUE

THE APPEARANCE OF COLORS AND COLOR PICKERS

Color pickers usually describe color with 3 dimensions:

Hue

The “type” of color by name:

red, blue, yellow, etc.

Brightness (Lightness)

How light or dark it looks.

Saturation

How pure/intense it is (how much gray is mixed in):

high saturation = vivid
low saturation = muted/dull

Color Pickers (definition + use)

Digital tools that let you select, adjust, harmonize colors using:

hue, saturation, brightness

They’re essential in:

fashion styling
digital design
photography
for making coherent expressive palettes.

COLORS, LANGUAGE, AND CULTURAL RELATIVISM

The big question

For 150+ years, scholars asked:

Why do we classify colors with words like red/green/blue/brown?

This helps understand:

what is biological (natural vision)
what is cultural/learned (language + society)

Languages vary a lot

Some languages have:

only 2–3 basic color terms

Others (English/Italian) have many more.

This made researchers think for a long time:

color perception is mostly learned and shaped by language/culture.

Berlin & Kay (1969): surprising discovery

They found that even though languages differ, color naming systems show shared patterns.

Meaning:

language affects how we talk about color
but there may be universal perceptual principles underneath

World Color Survey (WCS) (Kay et al., 1997)

A major project:

2,600+ participants
110 languages
many without writing systems

Results:

even with different numbers of color terms,
languages often named similar areas of the spectrum similarly
the strongest agreement areas aligned closely with English basic categories:
red, green, blue, yellow, orange, brown, black, white

Conclusion:

languages vary in labels, but humans share “perceptual anchors” that guide categorization.

COLORS ARE NEVER PERCEIVED IN ISOLATION

Key rule:

We see color only in relation to other colors.

Color is context-dependent.

Chromatic Contrast

A color can induce the opposite hue in a nearby region.

Example:

gray looks slightly greenish next to red
gray looks slightly bluish next to orange

Meaning:
Color perception is not only about light — it’s shaped by comparison and context.

Chromatic Assimilation (Bezold Effect)

Two adjacent colors visually blend so each “borrows” qualities from the other.

Meaning:

we perceive shades/tones that aren’t physically there
because the surrounding color changes the appearance

Absolute vs Relative Colors

Absolute color

The objective color of an object (red, blue) perceived more independently.
More stable, less influenced by context.

Relative color (simultaneous contrast)

Changes depending on surrounding colors.

Example:

a gray square next to red may look greenish
same gray next to green may look reddish

The physical color doesn’t change — perception changes.

Negative Afterimages (linked to Opponent-Process Theory)

If you stare at a color for a long time:

the cones/receptors for that color become fatigued

When you look at a white/neutral surface:

the opponent system becomes unbalanced
you see the complementary color

Examples:

red → green afterimage
blue → yellow afterimage

These afterimages are temporary (usually a few seconds).

SYNESTHESIA

Synesthesia is a perceptual-neurological phenomenon where:

stimulating one sense automatically triggers another sense experience

Example:

hearing colors
seeing sounds

Grapheme–Color Synesthesia

Letters/numbers/words trigger specific colors automatically.

Example:

“A” always appears red
“7” always appears green

These associations are:

consistent for each person
but differ across individuals

EMOTIONS AND COLORS

People and cultures link colors with emotions (affects fashion & communication):

Red → anger, excitement, passion
Green → peace, calm, balance
Yellow → happiness, optimism
Blue → serenity, comfort, trust
Black/Grey → sadness, depression, melancholy

Key idea:

Color is not only visual — it is psychological and emotional.

Warm / Cool / Neutral (mood effects)

Warm colors (red, orange, yellow) → energy, passion, proximity, action
Cool colors (blue, green, violet) → calm, distance, introspection, harmony
Neutral colors (white, gray, beige, black) → sophistication, restraint, balance, or emptiness

Emotional responses combine:

biological effects (arousal, heart rate, temperature feeling)
cultural associations (symbolism, experience)

Meanings are not universal — they change across cultures and history.

COLOR IN FASHION BRAND IDENTITY (chromatic signatures)

Color acts as non-verbal language:

instantly communicates mood, values, identity

Examples of brand signatures:

Valentino Red → power, seduction, timelessness
Tiffany Blue → exclusivity, sophistication, serenity
Bottega Veneta Green → boldness, digital modernity
Jil Sander Neutrals → minimalism, intellectual coolness

Each brand creates a chromatic signature like a logo/typeface.

COLOR IN PERSONAL STYLING

Color becomes a tool for:

self-representation
emotional expression

Wearing certain colors can affect:

how you feel about yourself
how others perceive you

Examples you gave:

red → increases perceived confidence
blue → seen as trustworthy

PERCEPTION OF FACES AND BODIES

From faces only → faces and bodies

For about 40 years, emotion research focused mainly on facial expressions.
However, humans do not communicate emotions only with the face.

We also use:

body posture
body movement

Because of this, affective neuroscience has increasingly focused on:

how the brain processes emotional body postures.

Brain areas involved in face perception

Three main brain areas are involved:

OFA (Occipital Face Area)
→ early visual analysis of facial parts (eyes, nose, mouth)
FFA (Fusiform Face Area)
→ processes stable information, especially identity (who the person is)
STS (Superior Temporal Sulcus)
→ processes changeable aspects:
gaze, facial expression, movement

These areas work together but have different roles.

Why bodies matter in emotion perception

Bodies are crucial because:

From far away, faces are hard to read
Faces may be:
- too small
- blurred
- occluded (covered)

Bodies allow emotion recognition:

at a distance
when facial information is missing or unclear

As shown by Beatrice de Gelder (2009), body expressions support emotion recognition in exactly these situations.

What body expressions communicate

Body expressions:

convey actions and intentions
tell us what someone is about to do, not just what they feel

Important interaction:

perception of facial expressions is influenced by emotional body expressions
and perception of bodies is influenced by facial expressions

(Ingrid Meeren et al., 2005; Sashank Rajhans et al., 2016)

Face vs body: different emotional roles

Facial expressions → more related to mental states (feelings, emotions)
Whole-body expressions → more related to potential actions and reactions

So:

faces tell us how someone feels
bodies tell us what someone might do

Body cues dominate in intense emotions (2012, Science)

A 2012 case study published in Science examined a professional tennis player during:

winning points
losing points2

These were extreme emotional situations.

Key findings

Facial expressions alone were often ambiguous under high emotional intensity
Body postures clearly communicated:
- emotional valence (positive vs negative)
- action tendencies (celebration vs defeat)

When face and body were incongruent:

participants followed the body, not the face

Conclusion

Body language plays a primary role in recognizing intense emotions.

Comprehending body language and mimics (ERP + neuroimaging)

This study used:

professional Italian actors
behavioural tasks
ERP
neuroimaging

What was tested

How viewers process:

emotional body postures
facial expressions
congruence vs incongruence between them

Results

Viewers detected mismatches very rapidly
ERP showed early neural differences
→ meaning the process is automatic
Neuroimaging showed involvement of motor-related brain areas

Meaning

Understanding body language:

is not only visual
involves motor simulation

This supports embodied theories of perception.

What is ERP?

ERP (Event-Related Potential):

a small electrical brain response
occurs when we see, hear, or think about something specific
measured using EEG
time-locked to an event (milliseconds)

Example events:

seeing a face
seeing a body posture
reading a word

Embodied body language (EEG study)

This study investigated how emotions from faces and bodies are integrated.

Task

Participants saw pairs of stimuli:

happy or sad
faces and/or bodies
They judged whether emotions matched.

Two types of pairs

Intra-category: face–face or body–body
Cross-category: face–body or body–face

Key result (N400)

Emotional incongruence produced a stronger N400 signal
Effect occurred in both intra- and cross-category conditions
Stronger when the first stimulus was a face

Interpretation

The brain integrates emotional meaning differently depending on stimulus type
Faces tend to guide interpretation of bodies more than the reverse
Emotion understanding relies on visual perception + bodily simulation

Visual exploration of emotional body language (eye-tracking)

Aim

To study how people visually explore emotional body language when faces are hidden.

Method

Static images of headless bodies
Emotions: angry, happy, neutral
Task: judge emotional intensity
Eye-tracking measured:
- latency of first fixation
- number of fixations

Findings

A left-gaze bias: people looked first and more often to the left side
Likely linked to expressive cues from the left hand
Different fixation patterns for angry vs happy postures

Conclusion

Emotion influences how our eyes explore bodies.

AFFORDANCES, BODIES, AND FASHION

Petra Leutner — Affordances in the Field of Fashion and Clothing

Core question

Can James J. Gibson’s concept of affordance be applied to fashion and clothing?

Gibson’s Ecological Theory of Perception

1. Perception is direct

We don’t first see shapes and colors and then “build” meaning in our head.
👉 We immediately see what things are.

Example:
You don’t see lines and colors and then think “this is a chair”.
You just see a chair.

2. Perception happens in an environment

We never perceive things alone or in isolation.
👉 We always perceive them in a real world, with context.

Example:
A chair in a classroom is seen differently than a chair in a museum.

3. Perception depends on our body and movement

What we perceive depends on:

our body size
our abilities
how we move

Example:
A stair may look:

easy to climb for an adult
too high for a small child

4. Perception is for action

We perceive things in order to act, not just to look at them.

Example:
We see the ground as:

something to walk on
something to run on
something to jump over

5. We see things in terms of what we can do with them

This is Gibson’s most famous idea: affordances.

👉 Objects are perceived by the actions they allow.

Examples:

A chair → something to sit on
A door handle → something to pull
A button → something to press

We don’t first analyze the object —
we immediately see its use.

One-sentence summary

According to Gibson, we directly perceive meaningful possibilities for action in the environment, based on our body and how we move in the world

Affordances (definition)

Affordances are:

the action possibilities the environment offers to a perceiver

They are:

neither purely objective nor subjective
relational (between object and perceiver)
body-dependent
action-based (not about naming or classifying)
economical (we perceive what matters)

Important points (in simple words)

Not only in the object
Affordances are not just in the object itself and not just in your head.
👉 They exist between you and the object.
Depend on your body
What you can do depends on your size and abilities.
👉 A wall might afford climbing for one person, but not for another.
About action, not labels
You don’t first think “this is a chair”.
👉 You think “I can sit here”.
We notice what matters
We don’t see everything — only what is useful right now.
👉 If you’re tired, you notice chairs more.

Gestalt theory as a precursor

Gestalt psychologists:

Christian von Ehrenfels
Max Wertheimer
Wolfgang Köhler

Key ideas:

We perceive wholes before parts
Perception is organized and simplified
Principles like figure–ground, proximity, similarity

Gibson builds on this by grounding perception in movement and environment.

Affordances and design

In design theory:

objects invite actions
affordances should be clear and functional
(Don Norman)

Example:

a stair railing affords support

Clothing vs Fashion (Petra Leutner) affordances in fashion

Clothing

practical body covering
protection, modesty, adornment
clear affordances:
- pants → pulling over legs
- sleeves → inserting arms
- soft fabric → comfort
dressing is automated and embodied

Fashion

symbolic
social
aesthetic system

Fashion often questions affordances instead of optimizing them.

Hussein Chalayan — Afterwords (2000)

Garments:

made of wood or metal
transformed into furniture

Affordances:

wearing
object use

This created:

ambiguity
contradiction

Also a political dimension:

refugees redefining object–body relations

Bernhard Willhelm — Molux (2005)

Garments with:

multiple sleeve-like extensions
no clear instruction on how to wear them

Affordances are suspended, shifting focus to reflection.

Final fashion theory conclusion

Fashion does not simply serve function.

It:

creates a fashion body
reflects on affordances rather than optimizing them
distorts, negates, rewrites action possibilities

The productivity of affordances in fashion lies in:

revealing non-verbal communication between body and object
rethinking action, perception, and aesthetics

PERFECT EXAM SENTENCE

Perception of faces and bodies relies on integrated visual, motor, and embodied processes, where body expressions often dominate emotional interpretation, and fashion uses affordances not to guide action efficiently but to question, destabilize, and aestheticize the relationship between body, perception, and meaning.

Sensory–motor information: why it matters

When we perceive the world, the brain doesn’t only “look.”
It also automatically links what we see to possible actions (how we could interact with things) and to our own body(where we are, what we feel, what we could do).

Two special neuron classes are central here:

Canonical neurons
Mirror neurons

1) Canonical neurons

What they are

Canonical neurons are brain cells involved in action planning.

They activate when we see an object, and they help us understand how to use it.

What they encode

They represent key object properties such as:

size
shape
(and generally the features needed to plan a hand action)

These properties are necessary for actions like:

grasping
holding
manipulating

So the idea is:

Seeing an object automatically triggers a “how can I interact with it?” response.

Affordances

Affordances = the action possibilities an object offers.

Affordances depend on:

the object’s characteristics (shape, size, handle, surface, etc.)
the abilities of the observer (your body, skills, reach)

Examples

A chair → affordance: sitting
A handle → affordance: pulling

Canonical neurons + affordances (together)

Canonical neurons are one of the brain mechanisms that make affordances “real” in perception:

We don’t just see “a chair.” We see “something you can sit on.”

This helps us respond effectively to objects and situations in the environment.

2) Mirror neurons

What are they?

Mirror neurons are brain cells that copy what others do or feel.

When do they activate?

Mirror neurons turn on:

when you do an action (e.g. grab a cup)
when you watch someone else do the same action

👉 Your brain reacts as if you were doing it yourself.

What does this mean?

Because of mirror neurons:

You understand actions without thinking
You don’t need to analyze or reason
Understanding is direct and automatic

Why are they important?

Mirror neurons help explain why:

seeing someone yawn makes you yawn
seeing someone in pain makes you feel uncomfortable
seeing someone smile makes you feel better

Your brain reuses your own body system to understand others.

Big idea (very simple)

We understand other people through our own body, not just through thinking.

One-sentence summary

Mirror neurons let us understand others by activating our own brain as if we were doing or feeling the same thing.

Embodied Simulation model (key idea)

This mechanism is central to Embodied Simulation:

We understand the world and other people by internally “simulating” them using our own body-based representations.

That’s why perception is not purely visual—it’s also experiential and bodily.

Sense of self (bodily self-consciousness)

The “sense of self” here means bodily self-consciousness, made of:

Body ownership
= the feeling “this body is mine”
Self-location
= the experience of where “I am” in space
First-person perspective
= the viewpoint through which I experience the world (“from here, as me”)

Rubber Hand Illusion (Blanke, 2012)

What the experiment shows

This illusion shows how the brain constructs body ownership.

Setup

A fake rubber hand is placed in front of you
Your real hand is hidden
Both the real hand and the rubber hand are stroked at the same time (synchronously)

What happens

The brain integrates:

vision (seeing the rubber hand touched)
touch (feeling your real hand touched)

Because they match in time, the brain concludes:

“That rubber hand is my hand.”

Meaning (Blanke, 2012)

This demonstrates:

body perception is not fixed
the brain creates it through multisensory integration

It supports embodied theories:

The sense of self depends on how sensory and motor information are combined.

Tool use and the body (Blanke, 2012; Maravita & Iriki, 2004)

Main finding

When we use a tool, the brain can temporarily treat the tool as part of the body.

Using a stick/rake can extend the brain’s representation of:

the body
and the nearby space around the body

So the tool becomes incorporated into the body schema:

you act as if your arm reaches to the tool’s tip.

This supports embodied cognition:

perception, action, and body representation are flexible
shaped by experience

Types of space around the body

To understand tool use, we define spaces:

Personal space

space occupied by your body

Peripersonal space

space reachable by limb extension
also called action space

Extrapersonal space

space not reachable by limb extension
perceived mostly by senses (vision, hearing, etc.)

What happens when you use a tool to reach extrapersonal space?

If an object is too far away (extrapersonal), the brain must:

locate the object in extrapersonal space
maintain an updated internal “idea” of the body state (shape, posture)

Tool use lets the brain act as if:

peripersonal space expands outward
because the tool is treated like a body extension

Body schema

Body schema = the brain’s automatic internal map of:

where your body parts are
how they are positioned
how they can move
(without conscious thinking)

This is crucial for coordinated action.

Bimodal neurons (and why they matter)

What are they?

Bimodal neurons are brain cells that respond to two kinds of information:

Touch on your body (tactile)
Vision near your body (visual)

What do they do?

They connect seeing and feeling.

👉 They help your brain link:

what you see near your hand
with what you feel on your hand

Example:
You see a mosquito near your arm and feel it land —
your brain connects those two events.

Why do they matter?

Because of bimodal neurons:

Your brain knows where your body is
Your brain knows what is close to your body
Vision and touch work together, not separately

What happens in tool use?

When you use a tool:

These neurons can adapt
The brain starts treating the tool like part of the body

👉 Visual–touch links extend to the tip of the tool.

So:

Seeing something near the tool’s end
Is processed like seeing something near your hand

One-sentence summary

Bimodal neurons link what you see near your body with what you feel on your body, and during tool use this link can extend to the tool’s tip.

Tool use updates the body schema (key sentence)

Using a tool changes how the brain represents the body by updating the body schema.
Neural circuits adapt so the tool is temporarily included in the internal body map, allowing effective interaction with distant objects.

How we cover the body and face (fashion + perception)

Aimee Mullins for Alexander McQueen (No. 13, SS 1999)

McQueen opened the show with Paralympic athlete and double amputee Aimee Mullins wearing hand-carved wooden prosthetic legs.

Important details:

designed with prosthetist Bob Watts
inspired by Louis XIV furniture and Victorian boots
carved from ash wood
fit Mullins precisely without straps
she received them only hours before the show but walked confidently
reflects McQueen’s interest in:
- Victorian literature
- history of prosthetics
- the body as transformable through art/design

Connection to embodiment/tool-body extension:
Prosthetics can be perceived/used as part of the body, aligning strongly with body schema flexibility.

Face masks: effects on emotion, trust, identity (3 studies)

1) Marini et al. (2021) — Scientific Reports

Aim

Test how masks affect:

emotion recognition
trust attribution (perceived trustworthiness)
re-identification (recognizing someone later)

Method

Participants saw images of faces:

with masks
without masks

Tasks:

identify emotion
rate trustworthiness
recognize same person across images

Findings

masks significantly reduced emotion recognition accuracy
especially emotions relying on the mouth (e.g., happiness)
trust attribution changed: masked faces often rated less trustworthy
re-identification dropped with masks, though familiar faces sometimes still recognized

Implications

masks interfere with social communication and emotional perception
could reduce trust in professional/social settings
relevant for security/law enforcement where recognition matters

2) Carbon (2020) — Frontiers in Psychology

Aim

Specifically examine emotion recognition with masks.

Method

Participants categorized emotions from masked vs unmasked faces.

Findings

strong impairment in emotion recognition, especially positive emotions (happiness)
negative emotions (anger/sadness) less affected but still harder
mouth area is crucial; masks remove key information

Implications

masks reduce non-verbal communication
professions requiring emotional sensitivity (teachers, healthcare) may be disrupted
other cues (voice, gestures) become more important

3) Noyes et al. (2021) — Royal Society Open Science

Aim

Test how masks and sunglasses affect:

identity recognition
expression recognition
Compare:
super-recognizers vs typical observers

Method

Faces shown:

masked vs unmasked
sunglasses vs none
Tasks:
identify person
recognize emotion

Findings

both masks and sunglasses reduced identity recognition
even in super-recognizers
emotion recognition impaired too
(super-recognizers better overall, but still affected)
emotions relying on eyes (fear) less affected by masks, more affected by sunglasses

Implications

facial occlusion disrupts both identity and emotion recognition
effect is robust (even exceptional recognizers impacted)
real-world issues for security, policing, and everyday social interaction

One clean “exam-style” summary (not short, but compact)

Canonical neurons link objects to possible actions (affordances). Mirror neurons link others’ actions/emotions to our own bodily representations, supporting Embodied Simulation. The sense of self depends on body ownership, self-location, and first-person perspective, and can be altered through multisensory integration (Rubber Hand Illusion). Tool use shows the body schema and peripersonal space are flexible, with tools temporarily treated as body extensions, supported by bimodal sensorimotor circuits. Covering the face (masks/sunglasses) disrupts emotion recognition, trust judgments, and identity recognition, demonstrating how strongly social perception depends on visible facial information.

FACE MASKS IN FASHION, ART, AND VISUAL CULTURE

1) COVID-19 and social interaction: why face coverings matter

Facial expressions are crucial for understanding other people’s:

emotions
intentions

Research shows we need information from both parts of the face:

Upper face (eyes) → especially important for negative emotions like anger and fear
Lower face (mouth) → especially important for positive emotions like happiness

What earlier “face covering” research (e.g., veils) found

Studies on face coverings such as Islamic veils (where mainly the eyes are visible) found:

people recognize negative emotions better than positive ones
cultural/contextual cues can bias perception toward more intense negative emotions

So: when only the eyes are visible, emotion recognition becomes asymmetrical (better for negative than positive).

2) Sanitary masks: more than perception of emotion

More recent research focused on sanitary masks (COVID context). Masks can:

interfere with emotion recognition
act as a strong contextual cue of the pandemic
influence perception of physical distance and social distance

Interpersonal space

Interpersonal space = the distance people keep from others.

it varies with context
if someone “invades” it, we feel discomfort or threat

Important notes from your text:

people with personal trauma often keep greater distance
but collective trauma like a pandemic may do the opposite:
- can foster social closeness
- stronger sense of community and shared destiny

At the same time:

fear and stress from the virus can reduce psychological resources (like empathy)
which can impair social interactions

The online study: “Consequences of COVID-19 on social interactions… face covering”

This study examined the pandemic’s impact on social interaction by testing:

how face coverings affect emotion recognition during the first peak
how they influence perceived physical and social distance
gender differences
how fear of COVID-19 relates to personality factors and social perception

Participants

96 healthy Italian volunteers
47 females, 49 males
mean age 36.2

Study structure (two parts)

(1) Socio-demographic section

divided into eight randomized parts
collected personal/background info

(2) Experimental section

Tested how PPE face covering (e.g., masks/scarves) affects:

understanding facial expressions
perception of physical distance and social distance

Measures used (exactly as in your notes)

Valence (emotion positivity/negativity)

Question: “How would you judge the emotion expressed?”
Answer: Visual Analog Scale (VAS) from −50 (very negative) to +50 (very positive)

Explicit emotion categorization

Question: “Which label best describes this person’s emotion?”
Choices (7): Anger, Happiness, Disgust, Fear, Neutral, Sadness, Surprise

Social distance / closeness

Measured with Inclusion of Other in the Self (IOS) scale
Question: “Which picture best represents your relationship with this person, as if they were part of your community?”

Physical distance

Question: “How physically distant would you like this person to be from you?”
Answer: VAS from 0 (very close) to 100 (very far away)

Results section (what each graph “shows” + key notes)

A) Emotional valence ratings (negative → positive)

Emotions tested: Anger, Happiness, Neutral
Compared: female vs male

Key notes

Anger = strongly negative for everyone
→ women rate anger more negative than men
Happiness = clearly positive
→ women give higher positive ratings than men
Neutral ≈ around zero
→ women perceive neutral as slightly more negative

B) Desired physical distance (how far you want the person)

Emotions: Anger, Happiness, Neutral
Gender differences reported with significance markers (*, n.s.)

Key notes

Angry faces → largest physical distance
→ women keep more distance than men (significant)
Happy faces → smallest physical distance
→ women react more strongly (significant)
Neutral faces → medium distance
→ no gender difference (n.s.)

C) Physical distance: High Protection (HP) vs Low Protection (LP)

Separate data for females and males.

Key notes

No significant difference (n.s.) between HP and LP
same pattern for both genders

D) Perceived social distance / closeness (IOS)

Compared:

HP vs LP
females vs males

Key notes

No significant difference (n.s.) between HP and LP
social closeness is not influenced by face covering

What the study concludes overall (your exact ideas, clarified)

People can recognize happiness and anger even when faces are partially covered.
In a pandemic context, using appropriate/effective PPE (mask) can lead people to reduce distance, promoting interpersonal relationships.
Females and males behave differently:
- Females choose distance mainly based on the emotional expression
- Males choose distance mainly based on the type of equipment, reducing distance more for the most effective protection (mask)

(That gender pattern is explicitly highlighted in the paper summary too.)

“Are face masks a problem for emotion recognition?”

Not when the whole body is visible

In real life, we rarely perceive:

a face alone
or a mask alone

We also use:

body language
tone of voice
posture
hand movements

Research shows emotions can be recognized even from body cues alone, when facial info is unavailable.
So the body can communicate emotions as effectively as the face (especially for intense emotions).

Specific finding you included

Emotion recognition was affected by masks mainly for happiness:

masks did not reduce recognition of sadness, fear, or anger
but people felt less confident in their answers when faces were masked (for any emotion)

Why happiness is special:

it relies heavily on the mouth
body cues for happiness can be less clear

Why fear/anger are less affected:

they rely more on eyes and eyebrows
which remain visible
and people can also rely on body cues

So:

with whole-body information, masks usually don’t harm accuracy much — except happiness.

“Does a mask hide only the face?” (Visual culture / theory)

This is where fashion + art theory comes in: masks are not just visual occlusions; they can be identity technologies.

Chiara Cappelletto (2020) — Transvestism: The parade of the embodied self

1) Masks are active, not passive

Today we think of masks as:

accessories
beauty items
decoration

Cappelletto says this is wrong.

👉 Historically, masks were seen as almost alive:

not just objects
not full bodies
something in between

Because of this, masks had the power to change identity.

2) You don’t need to cover the whole face

Even partial masks can transform identity.

Example: the loup

a small half-mask worn by Parisian women
held between the teeth
still changed how the woman was perceived

👉 Small changes to the face can change who you are socially.

3) Why masks lost their power

Cappelletto explains the decline using:

Roger Caillois:
masks lost power when magic and ritual declined
Hans Belting:
faces are now everywhere (photos, media) → no mystery left

👉 When the face becomes too familiar, the mask stops being transformative.

4) Clothing is not just protection or beauty

People don’t dress mainly for:

warmth
comfort
beauty

Examples:

naked bodies painted instead of clothed
uncomfortable fashion (heels, suits)
seasonal contradictions

👉 Clothes often harm the body, yet we still wear them → meaning must be deeper.

5) Dressing = building a temporary self

For Cappelletto, the main reason we dress is:
👉 to construct identity

Clothes:

control how much of the body is shown
shape how we act and feel
slowly change who we are over time

She says clothes have “genetic power”:
they actively form the body and self.

6) “We are our own clay”

Identity is built through body practices:

clothing
makeup
tattoos
surgery

👉 Humans actively shape themselves.
We are not given an identity — we make it.

7) Clothing as body technology

Clothes act like tools:

can extend abilities
can restrict movement

Neuroscience supports this:

tools change body perception
clothes can do the same

👉 Masks and clothes are technologies of the body, not decorations.

Louis W. Flaccus (1906) — Psychology of Clothes

Core idea (very simple)

Clothes affect:

how we feel
how we act
how we see ourselves
how others see us

And this happens through the body.

Key findings (simplified)

Heavy clothes → tired, depressed
Light clothes → free, energetic
Soft fabrics → calm, gentle
Stiff clothes → tense, self-aware

👉 Sensations spread to the whole self.

Clothes as body extensions

Drawing on William James:

clothes can feel like part of the body
like a cane or glove

That’s why:

new clothes feel strange
uncomfortable clothes feel oppressive
good clothes feel empowering

Social effects (most important)

Well dressed → confidence, power
Poorly dressed → shame, withdrawal

👉 We see ourselves through others’ eyes.

Masks and costumes

Wearing masks or costumes:

reduces social control
frees behavior
changes personality

Especially strong in children because their personality is not fully fixed.

Ciaunica et al. (2021) — Clothes as “Second Skin”

Main idea (very easy)

Clothes are:

always on the body
close to the skin
usually forgotten (background)

That makes them special.

Clothes as interface

Clothes mediate between:

body
environment
society

They manage:

temperature
touch
visibility
social meaning

Clothes as “second skin”

Clothes:

extend body awareness
become part of body schema
feel almost alive because of long contact

👉 We experience the world through clothes.

Clothes vs tools

Tools need attention
Clothes should disappear from awareness

When uncomfortable → they become noticeable.

Entwistle / Negrin — Fashion as embodied practice

What they criticize

Western fashion theory focused too much on:

images
runways
visual spectacle

And ignored:

touch
movement
comfort
bodily experience

Their key claim

Fashion is:
👉 felt, not just seen

Meaning comes from:

how clothes move with the body
posture
balance
sensation

The body is active, not a mannequin.

One strong exam-ready synthesis

Masks and clothing are not passive coverings but embodied artifacts that shape perception, agency, and identity. Cappelletto shows that masks historically functioned as transformative bodily agents, even when partially worn, and that dressing primarily serves identity construction rather than protection. Flaccus demonstrates that clothes act as psychological extensions of the body, affecting mood, self-feeling, and social confidence through sensory and social feedback. Ciaunica et al. conceptualize clothing as a “second skin” that extends body schema and mediates bodily awareness, while Entwistle and Negrin argue that fashion must be understood as a lived, multisensory, embodied practice rather than a purely visual spectacle. Together, these perspectives support an embodied view of selfhood in which identity is actively produced through bodily practices.

One strong “exam” synthesis

COVID masks show that face coverings change emotion reading mainly by removing mouth information (especially hurting happiness recognition), while full-body cues and context can compensate. In visual culture theory, masks and clothes are not passive coverings but embodied artifacts that shape selfhood, agency, and social perception: they function as identity technologies (Cappelletto), psychological extensions of the self (Flaccus), and a “second skin” extending bodily awareness (Ciaunica et al.), supporting an embodied view of fashion (Negrin).