Informational Aesthetics and the Digital Exploration of Renaissance Art

The recent rise in radiographic and photographic technology in the examination and interpretation of works of art—which has accompanied the digitization of artistic creativity in the contemporary world—has greatly enhanced the power of the naked eye to view and understand the masterpieces of the past. Through modern ‘digital telescopes’ a new breed of art scientists has emerged to both enhance and challenge traditional art scholarship. In this paper, I will first review some of the major projects in this new field of informational aesthetics and provide examples, from the impressive discoveries of Maurizio Seracini and Pascal Cotte, to the magnificent photographic examination of the Ghent Altarpiece by Van der Snickt and his team at the National Gallery of Art in Washington. Secondly, I will present the results of my own three-year exploration of Leonardo da Vinci’s extant paintings and drawings using photographic magnification, leading to the identification of recurrent autographic images and motifs only visible through the lens of a digital camera. Finally, I will discuss the implications of these studies in the philosophy of photography, the world of art and the future of digital humanism.