Shine of bronze and sound of brass: The relational perceptual constructs of timbre and gloss

The discussion and research on the visual perception of gloss has a lot in common with the discussion and research on the auditory perception of timbre. These two qualities seem to depend on multidimensional and dynamic combinations of features of the perceptual scene globally understood, including the perceiver. It is therefore argued that both gloss and timbre should be understood in interactionist terms, that is, as properties of processes of interaction between an object, a context, a medium, and a perceiver. Versions of interactionist accounts have already been proposed for colour, odour, and tactile texture. It is believed that adopting an interactionist ontology will improve both the scientific explanations and the philosophical understanding of perceptual objects.