Beauty & Your Brain: How Aesthetic Immersion Makes Our Lives Richer and More Magical

🧠💰 Neural abundance, explained

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Yesterday, after a visit to the doctor’s office for a LENS (Low Energy Neurofeedback System) session to restore my brain and nervous system to a new, healthy baseline, I headed over to the library to pick up design, fiction, and nonfiction books. For fiction, I picked up Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself by Dr. Joe Dispenza to read along with an audiobook and for fiction, I picked up The Goldfinch by Donna Tart to also read along with an audiobook. Who knows when I’ll get to Infinite Jest!

In the morning, DK’s Architecture: The Definitive Visual Guide, Bedtime: Inspirational Beds, Bedrooms & Boudoirs by Celia Forner, Treasures of the Louvre by Michel Laclotte, and had House Beautiful and Veranda magazines at the ready. This is more than just an inspirational morning ritual – it’s an experience of aesthetic empathy and neural abundance, a powerful catalyst for transforming neural pathways. I have recommended this to many clients and I tell people as frequently as I can to look at something beautiful first thing in the morning if they are serious about cultivating an attitude, countenance, and consciousness of wealth from within.

Aesthetic empathy is the profound connection between the human brain, emotions, and the experience of beauty, art, and pleasing sensory stimuli. Aesthetic empathy is not merely a passive appreciation of beauty; it is an active, immersive experience that involves the integration of sensory, emotional, and cognitive processes. At its core, aesthetic empathy allows us to resonate with the emotions, narratives, and meanings embedded in artistic expressions, be it visual arts, literature, music, or the natural world. And something curious happens to us.

Somehow, we can feel galvanized to live more meaningfully and creatively, be more imaginative, appreciative, romantic and passionate (great for relationships), and take better care of our appearance and homes just by being exposed to a lusciously scented candle or a sensory-uplifting environment. The award-winning, LEED certified Antipodean architecture of the library building I visited always does something marvelous to my brain and nervous system. I sat on the rooftop bench peering up through the treetop branches of their rooftop garden at a hummingbird, mesmerized for an untold span of time.

Here’s what the behavioral sciences can clue us in on about how beauty affects our brains, nervous systems, and psyche, making our lives richer and more magical:

Neurobiology and Neuroscience:

Anjan Chatterjee’s The Aesthetic Brain serves as a gateway into the neurobiological realm of aesthetic experiences. The brain, particularly the reward circuitry, responds dynamically to stimuli perceived as beautiful. The orbitofrontal cortex, a key player in reward processing, lights up, reinforcing the pleasure associated with aesthetic encounters. Studies have shown that exposure to beauty can activate the brain’s default mode network, linking aesthetic experiences to introspection and self-reflection.

Dahlia W. Zaidel, in Art and the Brain, explores the emotional processing aspects of aesthetic experiences. The limbic system, including the amygdala and hippocampus, plays a vital role in shaping our emotional responses to art and beauty. This emotional engagement not only enriches the aesthetic experience but also contributes to the formation of lasting memories associated with these encounters.

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Psychology:

Aesthetic empathy extends its reach into the realm of psychology, intertwining with our cognitive and emotional landscapes. The act of perceiving and appreciating beauty is a complex interplay of sensory input, emotional resonance, and cognitive interpretation. The subjective nature of aesthetic experiences makes them deeply personal, reflecting individual preferences, cultural influences, and life experiences.

Evolutionary Psychology:

In The Age of Insight, Eric Kandel unravels the evolutionary roots of our aesthetic preferences. The ability to appreciate beauty and artistic expressions, he argues, has adaptive significance. It goes beyond mere hedonistic pleasure; it contributes to social cohesion, mate selection, and even survival. Evolution has shaped our brains to seek out and find pleasure in beauty, reinforcing behaviors that enhance our well-being and connection with others.

Implications in Modern Living and Culture:

In the fast-paced and often chaotic world of modern living, the significance of aesthetic empathy becomes even more pronounced. The visual and sensory bombardment we face daily can lead to sensory overload and emotional fatigue. Incorporating moments of aesthetic contemplation, whether through art, nature, or intentional design, offers a respite for the mind and a pathway to reconnection with our innate capacity for wonder and beauty.

Why Aesthetic Empathy Matters:

Aesthetic empathy is not a mere luxury; it is a fundamental aspect of human experience that contributes to our overall well-being. In a world marked by stress, uncertainty, and technological saturation, cultivating aesthetic empathy becomes a tool for resilience and mental health. Studies suggest that exposure to aesthetically pleasing environments can reduce stress, improve mood, and enhance cognitive function.

Moreover, aesthetic experiences inspire creativity and innovation. Mark Turner’s The Artful Mind explores the cognitive science of creativity, highlighting how exposure to beauty and artistic expressions stimulates the brain's creative processes. This connection between aesthetics and creativity has profound implications for fields ranging from science and technology to business and education.

Aesthetic empathy provides a lens through which we can better understand the intricate relationship between the brain, emotions, and the appreciation of beauty and art. By exploring the neural underpinnings of aesthetic experiences, we gain insights into the evolutionary roots of our preferences and the potential therapeutic applications of aesthetic engagement.

Visual Stimulation and Neural Alchemy:

Visual stimulation acts as the catalyst, inviting us into a world of colors, patterns, and innovative designs. As we slip into relaxed focus and our thoughts begin to fall away, our brains respond by shifting into slower brainwave patterns, specifically alpha and theta waves. These slower frequencies create a bridge to the subconscious, unlocking a realm where neural transformation becomes not just possible but almost inevitable.

Imagine it as a creative conversation with your brain. You flip through the pages, walk through museum exhibits, stroll in botanical gardens, and sit in restaurants, absorbing the visual feast, and your brain responds by slowing down, entering a state where creativity and introspection intertwine. It’s a dance between conscious observation and the subtle whispers of the subconscious.

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Accessing the Subconscious:

This slower brainwave state we are all in during sleep and just before and after, times we daydream, and other times that we slow down our brain activity, isn’t just a passive experience; it’s an active engagement with the subconscious and a super-learning processor. The alpha and theta waves provide a backstage pass to the theater of your mind where ideas, memories, and emotions intermingle. It’s in this unconscious realm that neural pathways undergo a subtle, yet profound, shift.

As you immerse yourself in aesthetic beauty, your brain starts to rearrange its furniture. Neural connections are pruned, others are strengthened, and dormant pathways are nudged awake. This dynamic dance within the subconscious is the alchemy of transformation, where the mundane transforms into the extraordinary.

Neurochemical Magic:

Now, let’s talk neurochemicals – the brain's messengers that play a pivotal role in shaping our experiences. When we engage in aesthetic empathy through visual stimulation, the brain releases a cocktail of neurochemicals. Dopamine, the feel-good neurotransmitter, surges, creating a sense of reward and pleasure. Endorphins, the brain’s natural painkillers, make a cameo, enhancing our overall sense of well-being.

This neurochemical symphony isn’t just a fleeting moment of joy. It becomes a confirmation, an affirmation from our brain that what we’re experiencing is not just aesthetically pleasing but abundant. The brain sees, processes, acknowledges, and is confirmed by evidence of abundance. It's a loop of positivity, a neural reinforcement of the richness of the experience.

Feeling Expanded and Abundant:

Beauty communicates and conveys plentitude to the brain and nervous system. It shows evidence that there is more than enough and more is possible. This starts to shift the brain out of negativity bias, the focus on potential threats to survival, and switches on a different mode of focused attention and awareness, literally lighting up different parts of the brain. As the neural transformation unfolds, there’s a palpable shift in how we feel – expanded and abundant. It’s not just a fleeting emotion; it’s a state of being that can linger beyond the morning ritual throughout the entire day. This feeling of abundance spills over into our perception of the world around us.

Aesthetic empathy is powerful leverage for cultivating a neural experience of abundance. It’s a conscious choice to infuse our minds with beauty, knowing that the neural ripple effect extends far beyond the visual feast of color, texture, and sensory indulgence. The feeling of abundance becomes a lens through which we navigate our day – a mindset that influences our interactions, decisions, and overall well-being.

Transformational Flow State Activation:

When we open ourselves to deep immersion into beauty, a transformative phenomenon unfolds – the activation of a flow state. It’s a harmonious fusion of heightened awareness, creativity, and an immersive sense of engagement. As we deeply feel and connect with beauty, whether it be in the strokes of a painting, the melody of a composition, or the serenity of nature, our consciousness becomes effortlessly absorbed in the present moment. The boundaries between self and experience blur, and a seamless integration between action and awareness takes hold. The neural processes that accompany this state of aesthetic absorption mirror the conditions conducive to flow – a delicate balance of challenge and skill, clear goals, and an intrinsic motivation fueled by the sheer joy of the experience. In the embrace of beauty, we find ourselves in a dance with inspiration, effortlessly navigating the currents of creativity, and unlocking a flow state where time seems to fade away, and the act of creation becomes an exhilarating and timeless journey.

Beauty, whether through art, nature, or any visually stimulating experience, can have a remarkable effect on our nervous systems. The act of deeply feeling and connecting with beauty becomes a regulator of our neural responses. As we absorb the intricate details of a painting by Susan McDonnell that depicts light in extraordinary ways or lose ourselves in the serenity of a stunning natural landscape designed by Nigel Dunnett, our nervous system undergoes a profound shift. The parasympathetic nervous system, often referred to as the ‘rest and digest’ system, takes center stage. It’s as if the beauty before us whispers to our nervous system, signaling that it’s time to slow down, to breathe, and to savor the present moment. The stress-regulating cortisol levels dip, heart rates gently lower, and a sense of calm permeates our being. In this state of aesthetic communion, our nervous system finds equilibrium, providing not just a respite from the demands of daily life but a pathway to sustained well-being.

We need quality art, design, and aesthetic beauty, not only in our personal lives but also our public spaces and social infrastructure. A house can have a profound impact on the wellbeing of those who dwell within it and the architecture, urban design, infrastructure, gardens and parks, and other designed environments that we are exposed to also has profound implications for public wellbeing. Including the arts and humanities as a part of our education is vital for us to become whole, individuated, and higher-conscious people who are thriving and capable of contributing meaningfully through our lives, relationships, work, and other ways we express who we are and how we live.

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With Love and Gratitude,

© Emma Bennett
Author of Written into Reality: The Art of Co-creating Your Dreams to Life, Founder, Creative Director of MVP Creative Agency

P.S. This post was written by a disabled writer with a brian injury and neuromuscular disorder

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