[visionlist] Ariane Levy-Schoen

[Françoise Vitu]

Dear all,

It is with great sadness that we heard of Ariane Lévy-Schoen’s passing, 
on March 23, 2026, at the age of 99.

Ariane retired from research some thirty years ago to devote herself 
fully to her family, but we and the research community have not 
forgotten her. Ariane was a guide and a source of inspiration for each 
of us—through her vision of science, her pioneering ideas, her 
inexhaustible and profound knowledge, her rigor, and her critical 
thinking—but also through the person she was: a strong, caring, and 
generous woman who gave so much of herself to the scientific and 
institutional community and who gave so much to us. We will not forget 
the wonderful years during which she shared her passion for research 
with us, knowing how to manage her research team as constructively and 
positively as she did her own family. Nor will we forget those beautiful 
and friendly moments spent in her magnificent home and her flower-filled 
garden she cherished so dearly. After her retirement, she remained in 
contact with us, welcoming us into her garden with our spouses and 
children, always attentive to our personal and professional fulfillment 
as if we were part of her family.

As Research Director at the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique 
(CNRS), Ariane was a leading figure in French scientific research and an 
internationally renowned scholar. She completed her studies in 
Strasbourg, Paris, and New York, spanning psychology, physics, and 
mathematics. Starting in 1953, Ariane did her first research work on the 
perception of the surrounding world and the development of the ability 
to perceive others’ emotions—particularly facial expressions—which 
earned her a Doctorate in Letters from the University of Paris, 
published in 1964. Subsequent work then led her to investigate active 
visual perception, and in particular the organization of visual and 
motor space in young children and adults—topics she addressed in 
collaboration with Jeanine Blanc-Garin and Jacques Paillard, before then 
devoting herself fully to the study of eye movement control. Following 
her early work on the programming of saccadic eye movements, she was 
joined in the mid-1970s by J. Kevin O’Regan, with whom she revived 
research on eye movements during reading, a field that at the time 
seemed to have reached an impasse. Their original and innovative 
approach led to significant advances, in particular by highlighting the 
essential role of visuomotor processes, and/or visuomotor strategies. 
Together, they founded the ‘Group Regard’, a unique research group—a 
true incubator that trained numerous researchers and a major European 
hub that fostered fruitful interactions and beautiful, long-lasting 
friendships, with, among others, François and artist Vera Molnar, John 
Findlay, Heiner Deubel, and Joël Pynte. Ariane is now gone, but her 
publications and her contribution will last, having established the 
bases of research in active vision. And the wonderful person she was 
will remain etched in our memories.

John Findlay, Rémi Humbert, Arthur Jacobs, Zoi Kapoula, Jean-Paul 
Mialet, Tatjana Nazir, J. Kevin O’Regan, and Françoise Vitu, her friends 
from the former Groupe Regard


-- 
Françoise Vitu,
Centre de Recherche en Psychologie & Neuroscience (UMR 7077 - amU & CNRS),
Aix-Marseille Université, Campus St Charles Bât.9 - Case C,
3 Pl. Victor Hugo, 13003 Marseille, France
http://crpn.univ-amu.fr
Francoise.Vitu-Thibault at univ-amu.fr
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