g e n e r a l n o t e

Artistic Portraits of Strange-Face Illusions

Produced through Eye-to-Eye Gazing in

Dyads or Mirror-Gazing

G I o v A n n I B . C A P u T o a n d G I A n C A R l o l E P o R E

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Strange-face illusions are apparitional perceptions of deformed faces,
unknown people and monstrous beings produced by prolonged
staring at one’s own face in a mirror or when staring eye to eye at
another person in a dyad, at low-level room illumination. In the authors’
实验, portrait artists drew illusions they perceived during a
10-minute eye-to-eye gazing session while paired in dyads with naive
参与者. Dissociation was measured through standard self-report
questionnaires. Results showed that portraits became more abstract and
less figurative as the artists experienced higher levels of nonpathological
dissociation. Statistically, a significant correlation was found between
art-abstraction ratings and dissociation scores by judges and portrait
artists, 分别. Findings are discussed in relationship to portraits
à la manière de Scipione and Francis Bacon.

Modern artists Scipione (1904–1933) and Francis Bacon
(1909–1992) created human portraits characterized by de-
形成的, stretched, flowing and melting facial features. 在
事实, modern visual artists acting as phenomenological neu-
roscientists have investigated mental processing and neuro-
physiological limitations of the visual system through their
paintings [1]. In connection to face processing, 实验-
tal psychologists have found that, at low-level illumination,
mirror-gazing at one’s own reflected face [2] or eye-to-eye
gazing within a dyad of individuals [3] produced perceptions
of facial deformations and apparitions of unknown faces—
the so-called strange-face illusion—that look like faces por-
trayed by Scipione and Bacon.

Further research has shown that dissociation [4] 的
subject’s consciousness is produced during strange-face il-
lusions [5]. The nonpathological dissociation produced by
mirror-gazing has a short-term effect that is completely dis-
sipated within 15 minutes of the end of the session [6].

Dissociation of consciousness has different facets: dereal-

Giovanni B. Caputo (教育家, artist), University of Urbino, DISTUM,
via Saffi 15, Urbino, PU 61029, 意大利. 电子邮件: giovanni.caputo@uniurb.it.
ORCID: 0000-0002-8692-4786.

Giancarlo Lepore (教育家, artist), Academy of Arts, via dei Maceri 2, Urbino,
PU 61029, 意大利.

参见https://direct.mit.edu/leon/issue/54/4 for supplemental files associated
与这个问题.

化 (detachment from the external world), depersonaliza-
的 (detachment from self-body) and dissociative identity
(compartmentalization of a second identity or personality).
Some authors have conceptualized dissociative experiences
as a progression on a continuum from normal integration
of consciousness to derealization, depersonalization and fi-
nally dissociative identity [7]. From a cognitive viewpoint,
these three dissociative levels can correspond to deficits of
integration at the three levels of self-referential processing:
bodily-self, minimum-self (尤其, body-ownership)
and identity-self, 分别. 反过来, these three different
impairments of self-consciousness produce distinguishable
effects in strange-face illusions.

In the present study, our hypothesis was that greater levels
of strangeness of portraits created by artists could be associ-
ated with higher levels of the artists’ dissociative states. 从
an operational viewpoint, this hypothesis can be stated as fol-
lows: that progressive levels of dissociation in the artist’s con-
sciousness should be shown by the progressive detachment
from a realistic portrait toward a higher level of abstraction
in their drawing. In order to test this hypothesis, we used the
eye-to-eye gazing test (如图. 1) for producing nonpathological
dissociation in dyads. Seventeen portrait artists (mean age
23.3 年; st.dev. 4.2) were randomly paired with 17 naive
参与者 (22.5 年; st.dev. 2.2), thus forming 17 artist-
naive dyads. (Artist-artist dyads were excluded to avoid prior
knowledge between members.) All individuals were white
Europeans who took part voluntarily in the research. Por-
trait artists were invited by one of the authors (GL) 在
basis of their skills to create face drawings. Naive participants
consisted of students and members of the general public. 这
two groups were both age and gender balanced.

Participants of each dyad met for the first time at the
laboratory, where they were introduced to the experimental
setting and gave their informed consent. The experimenter
explained that the aim of the research was “the perception
of the face of another person.” Each pair of participants sat
in two chairs positioned facing each other. They received
the following written instructions: “Maintain a neutral facial

https://doi.org/10.1162/leon_a_01824

莱昂纳多, 卷. 54, 不. 4, PP. 423–426, 2021 423

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sions starts, 一般, after one minute of gazing [8] 并且是
usually accompanied by a sort of “lucid” consciousness [9].
When the 10-minute test finished, participants were asked
to fill in a self-report questionnaire of dissociation adapted
from the Clinician-Administered Disassociated States Scale
(CADSS). Then we invited the artists to sketch drawings by
记忆, with pen or pencil, of the illusory faces they might
have perceived in place of the actual face of the other member
of the dyad.

The results of the questionnaire showed a large range of
dissociation among the artists (CADSS total score mean
± SEM = 26.9 ± 2.3; range = 12–45) and naive participants
(23.8 ± 2.3; range = 10–44). This difference (of dissociation
scores between the artists and naive participants) was sta-
tistically nonsignificant (ANOVA; F(1,32) = 0.92; p = 0.34;
eta-squared = 0.028).

全部 17 artists sketched portraits. None of the portraits cor-
responded to the other’s physical faces in the dyads. Eight
portraits are displayed in Fig. 2, which show drawings from
(A) 到 (H) at increasing levels of self-reported dissociation.
They can easily be classified into the categories of strange-face
illusions previously reported in the mirror-gazing test [10].
Portraits show figurative differences in relationship to
the level of the artist’s dissociation of consciousness. 对于前-

如图. 1. The eye-to-eye gazing test was conducted in a dark room that was
lit by a small light (20 瓦) placed between the two participants under a flat
opaque panel. Illumination of the faces was 0.8 lux. Drawing by Alberto Conti.
(© Giovanni Caputo)

expression. Your task is to look at the other participant. Keep
gazing in the eyes of the other participant. The session will
last ten minutes.”

Members of dyads took the experimental task seriously
and had no difficulty in maintaining eye-to-eye gazing with-
out laughing or crying. 实际上, the onset of strange-face illu-

乙

如图. 2. Portraits of strange-face illusions sketched by eight artists and sorted at increasing levels of nonpathological dissociation. According to the artists’
descriptions, the portraits represent: (A) an unknown woman; (乙) a woman of a different race; (C) an unknown woman wearing imaginary glasses; (d) a man
with multiple eyes; (e) an unknown dead woman; (F) an alien presence; (G) multiple apparitions of cartoon-like faces; (H) an evil witch. (© Giovanni Caputo)

424 Caputo and Lepore, Artistic Portraits of Strange-Face Illusions Produced through Eye-to-Eye Gazing in Dyads or Mirror-Gazing

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乙

如图. 3. Portraits of strange-face illusions sketched after a 10-minute session of mirror-gazing. Portraits were sorted in order of increasing levels
of nonpathological dissociation. The mirror measured 0.4 m × 0.4 m and was mounted on a stand placed in the center of a dark room, 在远处
的 0.4 m from the participant’s eyes. The small light (20 瓦) was positioned on the floor at a distance of 0.3 m behind the chair; the spotlight pointed
to the floor. Illumination of the face was 0.8 lux (see Mirror-Gazing Test in the online supplemental material). (© Giovanni Caputo)

充足, at low-level dissociation, which is characterized by
derealization at the early level of visual processing, strange-
face illusions are represented by temporary loss of face details
(如图. 2A) or changes of colors and facial features (Figs 2b and
2C). At intermediate-level dissociation, characterized by dep-
ersonalization, momentary loss of bodily-self cohesion (如图.
2d), dead faces (如图. 2e) or portraits of a “presence” (如图. 2F)
are shown. 最后, at high-level dissociative identity, appari-
tions of multiple cartoon-like faces (如图. 2G) or dissociative
personalities (如图. 2H) are likely to manifest.

Our hypothesis is that portraits become less figurative,
yet increasingly more abstract, as dissociation of conscious-
ness increases. In order to test this hypothesis, we printed
17 sheets with same-size portraits of strange-face illusions.
随后, we separately asked four independent judges
with formal expertise in figurative art to sort the portraits
from very realistic to very abstract. Rankings were statis-
tically correlated to artist dissociation scores (Spearman
rho = 0.35; p = 0.005), with an acceptable level of inter-judge
ranking reliability (Cronbach alpha = 0.44).

We obtained similar results in another experimental ses-
sion that used mirror-gazing (see the Mirror-Gazing-Test
(MGT) setup in the online supplemental material) 和
sorted at increasing levels of dissociation. Portraits illustrate
the three levels of increasing dissociation: derealization (的-
formations of facial features: 如图. 3A); toward incremental
depersonalization (body-ownership changes: an “aura” or
“presence” behind the subject: 如图. 3乙; “detachment” of the
face as if it were a mask: 如图. 3C); 最后, the abrupt inter-
ruption of self-identity and apparition of an “inconceivable”
dissociative identity (in the artist’s words, “a sorceress with
phosphorescent yellow sclerae”: 如图. 3d).

It is noteworthy to observe that, at the highest levels of
dissociative identity, portraits can look either realistic (作为
in Fig. 2H) or hallucinatory (as in Fig. 3d). 的确, a cou-
ple of portraits from dyads showed realistic dissociative
identities that look like hallucinations (so called pseudo-
hallucinations), 例如, a “shining adolescent” or an

“unknown individual with an exceedingly intense emotional
mood” (see portraits in the online supplemental material).
The comparison between mirror-gazing and eye-to-eye
gazing is instructive. Strange-face illusions during mirror-
gazing are very unsettling, because the subject is forced to
acquire consciousness of self-apparitions. From a different
看法, eye-to-eye gazing produces interpersonal pos-
sibilities of twofold-unconscious melting within the dyad
(i.e. each dyad subject cross-projects their dissociative illu-
sions onto the other’s face) and thus opens up a potential
for creativity.

None of the participants, either artists or naive individuals,
experienced strange-face illusions before the experimental
session. This finding reflects a sort of uneasiness in confront-
ing such unsettling experiences. Mirror-gazing during the
night is connected to some forms of magic and spirituality
[11,12]. Anthropology, theology and art history attest that the
usage of mirrors as a tool for awakening is rather common
across cultures [13,14], religions [15,16] and arts [17,18].

尽管如此, it is well known that great artists used mir-
rors extensively in their ateliers. 例如, Leonardo da
Vinci was fascinated by mirrors, as declared in his Trattato
della Pittura [19] and by Vasari in Le vite de’ più eccellenti
pittori, scultori, e architettori [20]. It is said that Leonardo
da Vinci had a black room containing a mirror, which he
presumably used for meditation [21]. His painting Saint John
the Baptist, in author Caputo’s opinion, is a portrayal of his
experiences with unsettling spiritual images of strange-face
幻想, which surface from the lucid obscurity of a reflec-
tive mirror.

此外, Francis Bacon possessed a large round mir-
ror that emerged like a magical self-presence within his
junk-filled atelier. Since a low level of illumination is re-
quired for triggering dissociative states of consciousness in
healthy individuals, further biographical research is needed
to discover whether artists such as Scipione and Bacon did
indeed conceive their portraits in dim light settings—only
afterward switching to normal light illumination for cor-

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Caputo and Lepore, Artistic Portraits of Strange-Face Illusions Produced through Eye-to-Eye Gazing in Dyads or Mirror-Gazing 425

rect usage of oil colors. Other ways to produce dissociative
states of consciousness are psychophysical trauma and psy-
choactive substance intake—and these tools should also be
considered in the biography of artists of strange-face paint-
英格斯. Francis Bacon’s portraits—single-figure, two-figure
and “in a mirror” paintings—investigate and represent the
entire hierarchy of dissociative states (for review of disso-
ciative states, tools for dissociation in the laboratory, 角色
of personality differences and possible neurophysiological

explanations see Caputo, Lynn and Houran [22]): (我) 的-
realization (例如. huge deformations and animal faces); (二)
depersonalization (例如. detachment of the face as if it were a
mask with holes, and a “presence” perceived/represented in
the shadows and through doors); (三、) dissociative identity
(例如. doubles lying side by side on a bed or a grass field).
综上所述, the experience of strange-face illusions can
unlock new horizons for both artistic achievements and
individual self-knowledge.

致谢

The authors report no conflict of interest. The Ethical Committee of the
University has approved this research.

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稿件收到 25 二月 2019.

Giovanni B. Caputo is a scientist and an artist. As a pro-
fessor at the University of Urbino, he studies cognitive psychol-
奥吉, psychopathology, 洞察力, consciousness, aesthetics and
spirituality. He is also a visual artist and filmmaker (alias Gió
Kaptra).