Did you ever wonder about the strange way humans take in the world? Like the animals we are, of course! A quick way to see this is with the ‘Fish Experiment.’ Look at the images below and note where your eyes go—without any effort on your part!

 Next this:
And these:Now, note what happens when you add a human face, someone famous, like CNN news anchor, Anderson Cooper:Or here:Or here:Even a well-known newsman like Cooper can’t get your attention like a red plastic fish, if the guy’s upside down. The brain’s not wired to let that happen. We’re a social species built for relationships, so much so that the brain makes it a priority to immediately focus and engage with any pattern arranged like a face—when it’s right side up.

And so, turn the tables, and Anderson becomes engaging again! Suddenly, riveting!Why should architects and designers care? We can be as creative as we like, of course, but will always be most successful once we realize nature’s bias—what she wants us to see and incorporate—the primal pattern—where she always, like it or not, makes us focus first.

Thanks to David Brussat, of Architecture Here and There for linking to this post, 4-05-20.

For more on the ‘primal pattern’ check out:

https://geneticsofdesign.com/2020/09/08/faces-the-key-to-making-happy-places/