Vividness and Control of Mental Imagery and the Components of In-Depth Drawing

The aim of this study was to examine the associations of control and vividness of mental imagery on performance in several components of in-depth drawing in a sample of fine arts undergraduates. The sample consisted of 56 second-year undergraduates (44 women and 12 men, mean age = 21.18 years) from the Fine Arts Faculty of Vigo University, Pontevedra, Spain. Participants were required to undertake a plastic art assignment focusing on the pictorial representation of space. Participants scoring high on the image control test obtained higher scores on the spatial analysis and in the formal construction of a work than participants with poor image control. Further research involving spatial image performance tests and mental image rotation tests is proposed.