Abstract
Bravais (1850/1949) demonstrated that there are five types of periodic dot patterns (or lattices): oblique, rectangular, centered rectangular, square, and hexagonal. Gestalt psychologists studied grouping by proximity in rectangular and square dot patterns. In the first part of the present paper, I (1) describe the geometry of the five types of lattices, and (2) explain why, for the study of perception, centered rectangular lattices must be divided into two classes (centered rectangular andrhombic). I also show how all lattices can be located in a two-dimensional space. In the second part of the paper, I show how the geometry of these lattices determines their grouping and their multistability. I introduce the notion ofdegree of instability and explain how to order lattices from most stable to least stable (hexagonal). In the third part of the paper, I explore the effect of replacing the dots in a lattice with less symmetric motifs, thus creating wallpaper patterns. When a dot pattern is turned into a wallpaper pattern, its perceptual organization can be altered radically, overcoming grouping by proximity. I conclude the paper with an introduction to the implications of motif selection and placement for the perception of the ensuing patterns.
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This work is dedicated to the memory of Gaetano Kanizsa, master of phenomenological analysis. This research was supported by PHS Grant 5 R01 MH473717 to the University of Virginia (M.K., PI). I thank S. Boker, J. Hollier, G. R. Lockhead, M. Peterson, J. R. Pomerantz, A. Schulman, R. N. Shepard, and J. Wagemans for their helpful suggestions.
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Kubovy, M. The perceptual organization of dot lattices. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review 1, 182–190 (1994). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03200772
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03200772