{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,1]],"date-time":"2026-10-01T21:38:49Z","timestamp":1790890729863,"version":"4.1.0"},"reference-count":55,"publisher":"SAGE Publications","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,4]],"date-time":"2025-12-04T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1764806400000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/page\/policies\/text-and-data-mining-license"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100021856","name":"Ministero dell\u2019Universit\u00e0 e della Ricerca","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["2020YB7J25"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2020YB7J25"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100021856","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100021856","name":"Ministero dell\u2019Universit\u00e0 e della Ricerca","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP), proj"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP), proj"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100021856","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100021856","name":"Ministero dell\u2019Universit\u00e0 e della Ricerca","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["PE0000006"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["PE0000006"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100021856","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["journals.sagepub.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["J Am Psychoanal Assoc"],"abstract":"<jats:p>This essay develops an integrated account of aesthetic experience by bringing neuroscience into dialogue with psychoanalysis. It critiques disembodied, oculocentric models of visual perception, proposing instead that aesthetic engagement is mediated by embodied simulation\u2014a neurofunctional mechanism enabling viewers to reenact observed gestures, affects, and movements. This simulation activates a prereflective, affective unconscious rooted in bodily memory and relational experience. Drawing on Winnicott\u2019s concept of transitional phenomena and Kris\u2019s notion of regression in the service of the ego, the author frames the aesthetic image as a transitional object that facilitates affective modulation and subjective reorganization. Aesthetic experience emerges not as symbolic interpretation but as a temporally structured act of play, attunement, and transformation. By articulating the convergences between neuroscience and psychoanalysis, the essay offers a novel model for understanding how images engage our bodies, shape our unconscious, and participate in the ongoing formation of subjectivity.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1177\/00030651251394305","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,4]],"date-time":"2025-12-04T13:58:48Z","timestamp":1764856728000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1177\/sage-journals-update-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":1,"title":["Aesthetics and the Unconscious: Toward an Embodied Neuroscience of the Image"],"prefix":"10.1177","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4815-3607","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Vittorio","family":"Gallese","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"179","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,4]]},"reference":[{"key":"e_1_3_4_2_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1093\/scan\/nsab066"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_3_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1745-6916.2008.00064.x"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_4_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1098\/rstb.2009.0058"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_5_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1515\/9781400839780"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_6_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1037\/h0085258"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_7_1","volume-title":"The aesthetics of atmospheres (ambiances, atmospheres and sensory experiences of spaces)","author":"B\u00f6hme G.","year":"2018","unstructured":"B\u00f6hme G. (2018). The aesthetics of atmospheres (ambiances, atmospheres and sensory experiences of spaces) (Thibaud J.-P., Ed.). Routledge."},{"key":"e_1_3_4_8_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.tics.2022.06.003"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_9_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1515\/9783110548570"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_10_1","volume-title":"Psychoanalysis and cognitive science: A multiple code theory","author":"Bucci W.","year":"1997","unstructured":"Bucci W. (1997). Psychoanalysis and cognitive science: A multiple code theory. Guilford."},{"key":"e_1_3_4_11_1","unstructured":"Cecchi D. (2024). La scena originaria della visione [The original scene of the vision]. Fata Morgana Web. https:\/\/www.fatamorganaweb.it\/paleoestetica-alle-origini-della-cultura-visuale-di-michele-cometa\/"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_12_1","volume-title":"The feeling of what happens: Body and emotion in the making of consciousness","author":"Damasio A.","year":"1999","unstructured":"Damasio A. (1999). The feeling of what happens: Body and emotion in the making of consciousness. Harcourt."},{"key":"e_1_3_4_13_1","volume-title":"Art as experience","author":"Dewey J.","year":"1934","unstructured":"Dewey J. (1934). Art as experience. Capricorn."},{"key":"e_1_3_4_14_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.tics.2007.02.003"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_15_1","first-page":"159","volume-title":"The standard edition of the complete psychological works of Sigmund Freud, Vol. 14 (1914\u20131916): On the history of the psycho-analytic movement, papers on meta-psychology and other works","author":"Freud S.","year":"1957","unstructured":"Freud S. (1957). The unconscious. In Strachey J. (Ed. & Trans.), The standard edition of the complete psychological works of Sigmund Freud, Vol. 14 (1914\u20131916): On the history of the psycho-analytic movement, papers on meta-psychology and other works (pp. 159\u2013215). Hogarth. (Original work published 1915)"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_16_1","first-page":"145","volume-title":"The standard edition of the complete psychological works of Sigmund Freud, Vol. 12 (1911\u20131913): The case of Schreber, papers on technique and other works","author":"Freud S.","year":"1958","unstructured":"Freud S. (1958). Remembering, repeating and working-through (further recommendations on the technique of psycho-analysis II). In Strachey J. (Ed. & Trans.), The standard edition of the complete psychological works of Sigmund Freud, Vol. 12 (1911\u20131913): The case of Schreber, papers on technique and other works (pp. 145\u2013156). Hogarth. (Original work published 1914)"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_17_1","first-page":"281","volume-title":"The standard edition of the complete psychological works of Sigmund Freud, Vol. 1 (1886\u20131899): Pre-psycho-analytic publications and unpublished drafts","author":"Freud S.","year":"1960","unstructured":"Freud S. (1960). Project for a scientific psychology. In Strachey J. (Ed. & Trans.), The standard edition of the complete psychological works of Sigmund Freud, Vol. 1 (1886\u20131899): Pre-psycho-analytic publications and unpublished drafts (pp. 281\u2013391). Hogarth. (Original work published 1895)"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_18_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1080\/10481880903231910"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_19_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1098\/rstb.2013.0177"},{"issue":"1","key":"e_1_3_4_20_1","first-page":"41","article-title":"Visions of the body. Embodied simulation and aesthetic experience","volume":"1","author":"Gallese V.","year":"2017","unstructured":"Gallese V. (2017). Visions of the body. Embodied simulation and aesthetic experience. Aisthesis, 1(1), 41\u201350.","journal-title":"Aisthesis"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_21_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3167\/proj.2018.120207"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_22_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.2478\/gth-2019-0013"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_23_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Gallese V. (2024). Digital visions: The experience of self and others in the age of the digital revolution. International Review of Psychiatry 36(6) 656\u2013666. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1080\/09540261.2024.2355281.","DOI":"10.1080\/09540261.2024.2355281"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_24_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1177\/00030651070550010601"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_25_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/j.tics.2007.08.001"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_26_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1093\/oso\/9780198793533.001.0001"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_27_1","volume-title":"The ecological approach to visual perception","author":"Gibson J. J.","year":"1979","unstructured":"Gibson J. J. (1979). The ecological approach to visual perception. Houghton Mifflin."},{"key":"e_1_3_4_28_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.4324\/9781315568287"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_29_1","volume-title":"The production of presence: What meaning cannot convey","author":"Gumbrecht H. U.","year":"2004","unstructured":"Gumbrecht H. U. (2004). The production of presence: What meaning cannot convey. Stanford University Press."},{"key":"e_1_3_4_30_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.7312\/kand17962"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_31_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1152\/jn.00696.2003"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_32_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/S0896-6273(04)00156-4"},{"issue":"1","key":"e_1_3_4_33_1","first-page":"25","article-title":"The aesthetic enjoyment and the reality principle","volume":"7","author":"Kris E.","year":"1938","unstructured":"Kris E. (1938). The aesthetic enjoyment and the reality principle. Psychoanalytic Quarterly, 7(1), 25\u201356.","journal-title":"Psychoanalytic Quarterly"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_34_1","volume-title":"Psychoanalytic explorations in art","author":"Kris E.","year":"1952","unstructured":"Kris E. (1952). Psychoanalytic explorations in art. International Universities Press."},{"key":"e_1_3_4_35_1","volume-title":"Powers of horror: An essay on abjection","author":"Kristeva J.","year":"1982","unstructured":"Kristeva J. (1982). Powers of horror: An essay on abjection (Roudiez L. S., Trans.). Columbia University Press."},{"key":"e_1_3_4_36_1","volume-title":"Philosophy in the flesh: The embodied mind and its challenge to Western thought","author":"Lakoff G.","year":"1999","unstructured":"Lakoff G., Johnson M. (1999). Philosophy in the flesh: The embodied mind and its challenge to Western thought. Basic Books."},{"key":"e_1_3_4_37_1","volume-title":"Essays on otherness","author":"Laplanche J.","year":"1999","unstructured":"Laplanche J. (1999). Essays on otherness (Fletcher J., Trans.). Routledge."},{"key":"e_1_3_4_38_1","volume-title":"The emotional brain: The mysterious underpinnings of emotional life","author":"LeDoux J.","year":"1996","unstructured":"LeDoux J. (1996). The emotional brain: The mysterious underpinnings of emotional life. Simon & Schuster."},{"key":"e_1_3_4_39_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1176\/appi.ajp.2016.16030353"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_40_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.4324\/9781003252979"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_41_1","first-page":"16","article-title":"On the therapeutic action of psychoanalysis","volume":"41","author":"Loewald H. W.","year":"1960","unstructured":"Loewald H. W. (1960). On the therapeutic action of psychoanalysis. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 41, 16\u201333.","journal-title":"International Journal of Psychoanalysis"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_42_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1007\/BF01492648"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_43_1","first-page":"129","volume-title":"Instinctive behavior: The development of a modern concept","author":"Lorenz K.","year":"1964","unstructured":"Lorenz K. (1964). The nature of instinct. In Hess E. H. (Ed.), Instinctive behavior: The development of a modern concept (pp. 129\u2013175). International Universities Press."},{"key":"e_1_3_4_44_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1002\/(SICI)1097-0355(199823)19:3<282::AID-IMHJ3>3.0.CO;2-O"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_45_1","volume-title":"Relationscapes: Movement, art, philosophy","author":"Manning E.","year":"2012","unstructured":"Manning E. (2012). Relationscapes: Movement, art, philosophy. MIT Press."},{"key":"e_1_3_4_46_1","volume-title":"Touch: Sensuous theory and multisensory media","author":"Marks L. U.","year":"2002","unstructured":"Marks L. U. (2002). Touch: Sensuous theory and multisensory media. University of Minnesota Press."},{"key":"e_1_3_4_47_1","first-page":"159","volume-title":"The primacy of perception","author":"Merleau-Ponty M.","year":"1964","unstructured":"Merleau-Ponty M. (1964). Eye and mind. In Edie J. M. (Ed.), The primacy of perception (pp. 159\u2013190). Northwestern University Press."},{"key":"e_1_3_4_48_1","volume-title":"Mente e paesaggio: Una teoria della vivibilit\u00e0","author":"Morelli U.","year":"2011","unstructured":"Morelli U. (2011). Mente e paesaggio: Una teoria della vivibilit\u00e0 [Mind and landscape: A theory of livability]. Bollati Boringhieri."},{"key":"e_1_3_4_49_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1037\/0278-7393.13.3.501"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_50_1","volume-title":"The present moment in psychotherapy and everyday life","author":"Stern D. N.","year":"2004","unstructured":"Stern D. N. (2004). The present moment in psychotherapy and everyday life. Norton."},{"key":"e_1_3_4_51_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1093\/med:psych\/9780199586066.001.0001"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_52_1","volume-title":"The renewal of pagan antiquity: Contributions to the cultural history of the European Renaissance","author":"Warburg A.","year":"2010","unstructured":"Warburg A. (2010). The renewal of pagan antiquity: Contributions to the cultural history of the European Renaissance (Britt D., Trans.). Getty Research Institute."},{"key":"e_1_3_4_53_1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/S0896-6273(03)00679-2"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_54_1","volume-title":"Playing and reality","author":"Winnicott D. W.","year":"1989","unstructured":"Winnicott D. W. (1989). Playing and reality. Routledge Classics. (Original work published 1971)"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_55_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Wojciehowski H. Gallese V. (2011). How Stories Make Us Feel: Toward an Embodied Narratology. California Italian Studies 2(1). http:\/\/dx.doi.org\/10.5070\/C321008974 Retrieved from https:\/\/escholarship.org\/uc\/item\/3jg726c2","DOI":"10.5070\/C321008974"},{"key":"e_1_3_4_56_1","volume-title":"Inner vision: An exploration of art and the brain","author":"Zeki S.","year":"1999","unstructured":"Zeki S. (1999). Inner vision: An exploration of art and the brain. Oxford University Press."}],"container-title":["Journal of the American Psychoanalytic Association"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/doi\/pdf\/10.1177\/00030651251394305","content-type":"application\/pdf","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"text-mining"},{"URL":"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/doi\/full-xml\/10.1177\/00030651251394305","content-type":"application\/xml","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"text-mining"},{"URL":"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/doi\/pdf\/10.1177\/00030651251394305","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,28]],"date-time":"2026-04-28T11:35:50Z","timestamp":1777376150000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/doi\/10.1177\/00030651251394305"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,4]]},"references-count":55,"alternative-id":["10.1177\/00030651251394305"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1177\/00030651251394305","relation":{},"ISSN":["0003-0651","1941-2460"],"issn-type":[{"value":"0003-0651","type":"print"},{"value":"1941-2460","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,4]]},"article-number":"00030651251394305"}}