Assoz. Prof. Matthew Pelowski, PhD
Winter term 2025
200143 SE Vertiefungsseminar: Geist und Gehirn - Fundamental Topics in Cognitive Science
540012 SE DissertantInnen-Seminar - Perception and Neuroaesthetics
Summer term 2025
200009 PS Proseminar zu Allgemeiner Psychologie - Cognitive Foundations of Experience and Behavior
200252 SE Vertiefungsseminar: Geist und Gehirn - Fundamental Topics in Cognitive Science
540012 SE DissertantInnen-Seminar - Perception and Neuroaesthetics
Winter term 2024
200143 SE Vertiefungsseminar: Geist und Gehirn - Fundamental Topics in Cognitive Science
540012 SE DissertantInnen-Seminar - Perception and Neuroaesthetics



Pelowski, M., Cotter, K., Specker, E., Fingerhut, J., Trupp, M., & Speidel, K. (2024). How lasting is the impact of art? An Exploratory Study of the Incidence and Duration of Art Exhibition-Induced Prosocial Attitude Change Using a 2-Week Daily Diary Method. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1037/aca0000670




Benvenuti, M., Scorolli, C., Di Iorio, A., Pelowski, M., & Chirico, A. (2024). Emerging technologies in varied domains: Perspectives and future research directions. Computers in Human Behavior, 151, Article 108016. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2023.108016

Leder, H., & Pelowski, M. (2024). Metaphors or mechanism? Predictive coding and a (brief) history of empirical study of the arts. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 379(1895), Article 20220427. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2022.0427

Weingarden, L. S., Pelowski, M., & Kühnapfel, C. (2024). Embodying the photographic image: Charles Marville’s Old Paris and New Paris series. In C. Vial Kayser (Ed.), Art as Experience of the Living Body: An East/West dialogue (1 ed., pp. 261-291). Vernon Press.

Cabbai, G., Kühnapfel, C., Prinz, J., Kaltwasser, L., Fingerhut, J., & Pelowski, M. (Accepted/In press). Emotion, Embodiment, and Aesthetic Appraisal: The Impact of Interoceptive Abilities and Art Type. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts.





Stamkou, E., Rohan, D., Pelowski, M., Lin, Y., & Gelfand, M. J. (2024). When rule breaking in art falls flat: Cultural tightness deflates deviant artists’ impact. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 18(1), 14-30. https://doi.org/10.1037/aca0000650





Home is Where the (He)art Is—Can Repeated Engagement with Real Artwork at Home Improve Wellbeing?

Fekete, A. (Speaker), Specker, E. (Contributor), Cotter, K. (Contributor), Trupp, M. (Contributor), Pelowski, M. (Contributor) & Leder, H. (Contributor)

15 Mar 2025

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


How do we best combat prejudice and discrimination against refugees, asylum seekers & migrants with the arts? INTRODUCING A DECOLONIAL APPROACH TO EMPIRICAL AESTHETICS

Chakraborty, S. (Speaker) & Pelowski, M. (Speaker)

10 Jul 202413 Jul 2024

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Finding creativity, (re)defining oneself: Improving Parkinson’s disease patients‘ wellbeing via meaningful, creative arts-based interventions

Angermair, P. (Speaker) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

Jul 2024

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Finding meaning in our mortality through ‘meaningless’ encounters with abstract art

Makri, C. (Speaker) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

Jul 2024

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Meaning makes the difference: distinguishing art-experiences in the brain

Demmer, T. (Speaker) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

Jul 2024

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Meaning makes the difference: distinguishing art-experiences that make you feel better from those that also make you a better person.

Miller, S. (Speaker), Cotter, K. (Contributor) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

Jul 2024

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Reading Emotions in Art: Do autistic traits influence how we perceive emotions through art?

Kim, Y. A. (Speaker), Gülen, E. (Contributor), Lauer, K. (Contributor), Demmer, T. (Contributor), Kühnapfel, C. (Contributor), Silani, G. (Contributor) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

17 May 2024

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Across minds and masterpieces: A multi-brain approach to identifying ‘universal resonance’ to art

Demmer, T. (Speaker), Kim, Y. A. (Contributor), Schabasser, J. (Contributor), Liu, T. (Contributor) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

May 2024

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Art in urban spaces: Assessing the psychological and societal effects of two public art exhibitions in Berlin

Kühnapfel, C. (Speaker), Trupp, M. (Contributor), Pelowski, M. (Contributor) & Fingerhut, J. (Contributor)

May 2024

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Extraordinary tools: A (brief) discussion of the multifaceted impact of aesthetics, creativity, arts (on the brain…)

Pelowski, M. (Keynote speaker)

May 2024

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Public


The prospect and promise of neuromodulation in creativity research

Schmid, F. (Speaker), Angermair, P. (Contributor), Spee, B. T. M. (Contributor), Pelowski, M. (Contributor) & Crone, J. S. (Contributor)

May 2024

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


While viewing the artwork, I felt... Using network and latent profile analyses to identify and characterize supraordinate varieties of art-experience.

Miller, S. (Speaker), Cotter, K. (Contributor), Fingerhut, J. (Contributor) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

May 2024

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Classifying Art-Experiences: a new approach to exploring variance in the impact of arts engagement.

Miller, S. (Speaker), Cotter, K. (Contributor) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

Mar 2024

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


How do we experience art? Using network and latent profile analyses to identify and characterize varieties of art-experience.

Miller, S. (Speaker) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

Feb 2024

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Move me, astonish me, make me shudder, rage, ...or don't: Capturing and Applying our nuanced (but also shared?) ways of engaging Art

Pelowski, M. (Keynote speaker)

Feb 2024

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Public


A Journey to a matched control condition for art-based beauty appreciation for highly sensitive people

Trupp, M. (Speaker), Igdalova, A. (Contributor), Spee, B. T. M. (Contributor), Stamkou, E. (Contributor), Pelowski, M. (Contributor) & Greven, C. (Contributor)

2024

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Art as a predictor of Neurodegenerative disease?

Pelowski, M. (Keynote speaker)

2024

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


The evidence base and the suggested mechanisms for the well-being impacts of engaging visual art—A systematic review

Trupp, M. (Speaker), Howlin, C. (Contributor), Fekete, A. (Contributor), Kutsche, J. (Contributor), Fingerhut, J. (Contributor) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

2024

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


The Power of the Arts and Culture for People’s Well-being and Inclusion

Pelowski, M. (Invited speaker)

2024

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Public


Unlocking the transformative power of arts—The ARTIS Lab

Pelowski, M. (Invited speaker)

2024

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Empirically and theoretically capturing and Latent Profile Modelling of our shared ways of responding to art

Pelowski, M. (Invited speaker)

Oct 2023

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


The (brain of the) Artist is present: Comparing brain synchrony and the transformative potential of performance art in an art vs. non-art context

Demmer, T. (Speaker), Schuber, M. (Contributor), Kühnapfel, C. (Contributor) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

26 Aug 2023

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


What did the art mean? A case study of an installation by artist Anselm Kiefer.

Miller, S. (Speaker) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

26 Aug 2023

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Entrances In: Priming Strategies to Enhance the Well-being Impact of Art Viewing at the National Gallery, London.

Trupp, M. (Speaker), Landau, R. (Contributor), Templer-Lewis, K. (Contributor), Igdalova, A. (Contributor), Kühnapfel, C. (Contributor), Bignardi, G. (Contributor), Fingerhut, J. (Contributor), Chamberlain, R. (Contributor) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

3 Aug 2023

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Art as intervention: On the effects of a street-level gallery exhibition on neighbourhood connectedness, satisfaction, and psychological wellbeing

Kühnapfel, C. (Speaker), Cabbai, G. (Contributor), Prinz, J. (Contributor), Pelowski, M. (Contributor) & Fingerhut, J. (Contributor)

Aug 2023

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


How do we move in front of art? Classifying visitor movement types in relation to emotion and evaluations in a gallery-like setting

Kühnapfel, C. (Speaker), Fingerhut, J. (Contributor) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

Aug 2023

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Loveability as an Holistic Approach to Placemaking: the Connection between Uplifting Experiences and Creative Cultural Spaces for Psycho-Spatial Wellbeing

Rambhoros, M. (Speaker) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

28 Jul 2023

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


What is the evidence that art viewing can impact well-being?

Trupp, M. (Speaker) & Pelowski, M. (Speaker)

19 Jul 2023

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Societal value of Arts and Culture and the impact on Well-being, Mental Health and Inclusion for all

Pelowski, M. (Invited speaker)

Jun 2023

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionOther


The ARTIS Lab

Pelowski, M. (Invited speaker)

Apr 2023

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Public



Is it the Prime or the Provenance? Investigating art experience with AI and human-generated art using fNIRS

Demmer, T. R. (Speaker), Fasan, N. (Contributor) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

3 Feb 2023

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Welcome to Hell - the influence of gallery lighting on aesthetic experience of The Last Judgement by H. Bosch

Miller, S. (Speaker) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

Feb 2023

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science



Welcome to Hell - the influence of intentionally designed gallery lighting on aesthetic experience of The Last Judgement by H.Bosch

Miller, S. (Speaker) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

Sept 2022

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Who benefits from art and how: The role of pleasure, meaning and aesthetic responsiveness in art interventions

Trupp, M. (Speaker) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

31 Aug 2022

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Edmund de Belamy and the art of transmitting emotions - exploring perception and emotion sharing in AI generated art using fNIRS

Demmer, T. (Speaker), Fasan, N. (Contributor), Kühnapfel, C. (Contributor), Pelowski, M. (Contributor) & Fingerhut, J. (Contributor)

27 Aug 2022

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Unlocking the Muse: Insights Into If, When, and Why Artistic Creativity Might Emerge, Change, or be Applied as Arts-Based Intervention in People with Parkinson's Disease

Spee, B. T. M. (Speaker), Stap, T. (Contributor), Crone, J. S. (Contributor), Koksma, J.-J. (Speaker), Meinders, M. (Contributor), Darweesh, S. (Contributor), Bloem, B. R. (Speaker) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

27 Aug 2022

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Unlocking the Muse: Insights into if, when, and why artistic creativity might emerge and be applied in the lives of people with Parkinson’s disease

Pelowski, M. (Speaker) & Spee, B. T. M. (Contributor)

21 Aug 2022

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Can you feel the difference? – A fNIRS study exploring emotional experience and perceived intentionality in AI and human generated art

Demmer, T. (Speaker), Fasan, N. (Contributor), Kühnapfel, C. (Contributor), Pelowski, M. (Contributor) & Fingerhut, J. (Contributor)

Aug 2022

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Cross-cultural comparison of emotion recognition in abstract drawings

Chamberlain, R. (Speaker), Dehove, M. (Contributor), Mikuni, J. (Contributor), Tanaka, T. (Contributor), Ishizu, T. (Contributor), Kühnapfel, C. (Speaker), Leder, H. (Contributor) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

Aug 2022

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Empirical aesthetics for installation art: The role of the body in the experience of Tomás Saraceno’s installation artwork “In Orbit”

Kühnapfel, C. (Speaker), Fingerhut, J. (Contributor) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

Aug 2022

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


How do we move in front of art; How does this impact art experience? A study of mobile eye-and movement- tracking, emotion, and evaluations in an ecologically-valid gallery setting

Kühnapfel, C. (Speaker), Fingerhut, J. (Contributor) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

Aug 2022

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Only one Monet in-person and online: How does an online art intervention compare to an in-gallery art intervention for anxiety and mood?

Trupp, M. (Speaker), ehrlich, L. (Contributor), Fekete, A. (Contributor), Specker, E. (Contributor) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

Aug 2022

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Using eye tracking to understand the relationship between visual complexity of geometrical organizations, perceptual fluency, and aesthetic preferences

Beder, D. (Speaker), Pelowski, M. (Contributor) & Imamoğlu, Ç. (Contributor)

Aug 2022

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science



Emotion sharing and empathy through art: A study of artist and viewer connections in behaviour and brain using fNIRS hyperscanning

Demmer, T. (Speaker), Kühnapfel, C. (Contributor) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

Jul 2022

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Attractiveness of variety (with lighting)

Pelowski, M. (Keynote speaker)

Mar 2022

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Public


AON Working Table on Aesthetic Cognitivism

Pelowski, M. (Invited speaker)

2022

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


ARTIS Project: Tracking the ability of visual art as a vehicle for transforming attitudes, behaviours, health

Pelowski, M. (Keynote speaker)

2022

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionOther


The power of the arts for people’s wellbeing

Pelowski, M. (Invited speaker)

2022

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionOther


“critical respondent” dialogue with Alexander Damianisch

Pelowski, M. (Invited speaker)

28 Oct 2021

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Public



Assessing transformations through art?

Fingerhut, J. (Speaker) & Pelowski, M. (Speaker)

Sept 2021

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Can a brief interaction with online, digital art make you feel better? A comparative study of the impact of online art and culture presentations on mood, state-anxiety, loneliness, and subjective wellbeing

Trupp, M. (Speaker), Bignardi, G. (Contributor), Specker, E. (Contributor), Chana, K. K. K. (Contributor) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

Sept 2021

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Delivering Art interventions for Wellbeing Online

Trupp, M. (Speaker), Bignardi, G. (Contributor), Chana, K. K. K. (Contributor), Specker, E. (Contributor) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

Sept 2021

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


How do we move in front of art; How does this impact art experience? A study of mobile eye- and movement-tracking, emotion, and evaluations in an ecologically-valid gallery setting

Kühnapfel, C. (Speaker) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

Sept 2021

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


The arts and AI

Pelowski, M. (Invited speaker)

25 May 2021

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Public


Embodied and extended sensing, Co-corporeality Seminar

Pelowski, M. (Invited speaker)

22 Apr 2021

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Public


From the Prairie to Japan—artist to Cognitive Neuroscientist: Navigating the ins and outs of a (traditional?) career path in academics

Pelowski, M. (Keynote speaker)

2021

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Public



What can art do? Empirical investigations into the depth, scope, and implications of our shared art experiences

Pelowski, M. (Invited speaker)

2021

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Back behind the Brillo Box: From can we study ‘Art,’ to what can, could, and might art do?

Pelowski, M. (Invited speaker)

2020

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


What can art do? Empirical investigations into our shared art experiences

Pelowski, M. (Invited speaker)

2020

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Public


Can you really feel what I do? Behavioral and brain studies on empathic and emotional connections between viewers and artists

Pelowski, M. (Invited speaker)

Dec 2019

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


How can engagement in the arts effect our emotional lives?

Specker, E. (Speaker) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

Oct 2019

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science



From conception to reception – How artistic intentions transform to viewers’ emotions in contemporary art.

Markey, P. (Speaker), Boddy, J. (Contributor), Pelowski, M. (Contributor), Specker, E. (Contributor), Haiduk, F. (Contributor), Immelmann, B. (Contributor), Ibanez de Aldecoa de Elera, P. (Contributor) & Jean-Joseph, H. (Contributor)

30 Aug 2018

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Can causative brain manipulation really improve ability to produce art?

Pelowski, M. (Speaker)

Aug 2018

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Do you feel like I do? Spontaneous and deliberate emotion sharing and understanding between artists and perceivers of Installation art

Pelowski, M. (Speaker)

Aug 2018

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Is red warm for everyone? Assessing the agreement on aesthetic effects of artworks

Specker, E. (Speaker) & Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

Aug 2018

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


New Directions in Empirical Aesthetics. 実験美学の新たな方向性

Leder, H. (Keynote speaker), Pelowski, M. (Keynote speaker), Rosenberg, R. (Keynote speaker), Kawabata, H. (Keynote speaker), Specker, E. (Keynote speaker), Brinkmann, H. (Keynote speaker) & Markey, P. (Keynote speaker)

7 Mar 20178 Mar 2017

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


All liberals like abstract art except for me

Lauring, J. O. (Contributor), Pelowski, M. (Contributor), Forster, M. (Speaker), Kupers, R. (Contributor) & Leder, H. (Contributor)

30 Aug 2016

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionScience to Science


Accounting for others’ taste: Effect of desired and undesired social groups’ ratings on the appreciation of art

Pelowski, M. (Speaker)

2016

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionOther


All liberals like abstract art except for me

Pelowski, M. (Contributor)

2016

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionOther


Baumgarten Award presentation

Pelowski, M. (Keynote speaker)

2016

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionOther


But what does the brain do to our experience of art? A new integrated model of aesthetic experience

Pelowski, M. (Speaker)

2016

Activity: Talks and presentationsTalk or oral contributionOther


Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology

Wächtergasse 1
1010 Wien
Room: 306

T: +43-1-4277-47112

matthew.pelowski@univie.ac.at