Written by Saskia Wheeler
Last month at our Members Nexus event, I gave a talk on Neuroaesthetics and the Aesthetic Mindset, weaving together insights from science, philosophy, and the arts to explore how deeply our brains are wired for beauty, and why reconnecting with aesthetic experience is vital for wellbeing in the modern world.
For over 30,000 years, human beings have created music, artworks, and ritual dances — not merely as cultural expressions, but as key elements of our emotional and cognitive evolution.
Neuroaesthetics examines how our intrinsic desire for beauty and rich sensory experiences — across art, music, nature, dance, design, and architecture — has measurable effects on the brain, body, and behaviour.
Long before we developed written language, we were engaging in creative practices to help us make sense of the world (approx 40,000 years ago). Creativity has been essential for:
✨ Communication
✨ Human Connection
✨ Learning
✨ Emotional Expression
Art and expression are not add-ons to human life; they are deeply encoded in our biology.
Why Has Aesthetics Survived Evolution?
Early humans did not just craft tools for survival — they beautified them, decorating hand axes with intricate patterns.
Aesthetic embellishments signalled key attributes:
- Intelligence
- Fine motor skills
- Foresight and planning
- Access to rare resources
- Conscientiousness
Beauty became a way to advertise fitness — a visible cue of survival capability. Our brains evolved to seek beauty because this steered us to making decisions that propagated survival.
What Makes Aesthetic Experiences Unique?
How do we engage with aesthetic experiences?
Lived experience is a balance between our predictions of the world — shaped by memory — and the sensory impressions entering through the senses. This duality creates our subjective experience of reality.
Aesthetic encounters are distinctive because they draw on three interconnected elements:
- Knowledge and Meaning
The way we interpret a sensory experience is shaped by what we already know. The medial prefrontal cortex and anterior temporal lobe are involved in integrating semantic memory and personal relevance. For example, an architect might experience a building very differently from a doctor, not because the structure has changed, but because their mental frameworks shape what they notice and value.
- Sensory-Motor Engagement
Aesthetic engagement is not purely intellectual — it is felt in the body. Regions such as the premotor cortex, somatosensory cortex, and the mirror neuron system support our embodied response to sensory experiences. Whether we are moving through a gallery, watching a dancer, or listening to a piece of music, our brains are simulating and physically responding to what we perceive.
- Value and Emotional Resonance
Aesthetic experiences rarely leave us unmoved. The orbitofrontal cortex, insula, and amygdala contribute to the emotional salience and reward value we assign to beauty. These regions help explain why certain artworks move us to tears, or why natural light in a well-designed space can instantly shift our mood.
Beyond Enrichment: The Essential Role of the Arts in Wellbeing
Whilst technology has undoubtedly transformed modern life — enabling us to travel across continents, communicate in real-time, and access knowledge at unprecedented speed — it has also distanced us from the rich, embodied sensory experiences our brains evolved to depend on.
Contemporary life, with its emphasis on screens, efficiency, and constant output, often overlooks our deep human need for:
- Meaningful connection with others
- Emotional expression
- Sensory and embodied engagement with the world
Creative activities such as making music, dancing, crafting, and engaging with the visual or performing arts are not luxuries — they are essential to our mental and cognitive health. Research led by Dr Daisy Fancourt has shown that arts-based interventions can alleviate stress, support emotional regulation, and improve mental health outcomes. These findings have contributed to their integration into social prescribing schemes and NHS-funded initiatives, allowing GPs and healthcare providers to recommend creative engagement as a form of treatment for mental health conditions.
In education, Dr Ellen Winner’s work — particularly through the Studio Thinking framework at Harvard’s Project Zero — has demonstrated that regular engagement with the arts cultivates valuable habits of mind, including close observation, critical reflection, and perseverance. Her 2000 meta-analysis with Lois Hetland also challenged the idea of a universal “Mozart effect,” instead showing that arts education supports domain-specific cognitive development. In other words, creative practice may not boost general IQ, but it strengthens the specific cognitive and emotional capacities that underpin meaningful learning and personal growth.
In a world that often feels rushed, distracted, and fragmented, the arts offer more than cultural enrichment — they help rewire the brain, build resilience, and regulate the nervous system.
Cultivating the Aesthetic Mindset
How can we reclaim full engagement with the sensory world?
Susan Magsamen, author of Your Brain On Art and Director of the Arts and Mind Lab at Johns Hopkins University, lays out a protocol: The Aesthetic Mindset.
This approach involves:
- Curiosity — approaching life with openness rather than judgement
- Playful Exploration — recognising play as vital to learning and wellbeing
- Sensory Awareness — tuning in to how our bodies and surroundings feel, not merely what we think about them
- Being Both a Maker and a Beholder — allowing ourselves to both create and appreciate beauty across mediums
Nurturing these qualities can help to build richer, healthier, and more connected lives — supporting human flourishing in a modern world.
References
- Berenhaus, M., & Cupchik, G. (2020). Reflections on research with Ellen Winner at Project Zero. In Academic Resources – Studio Thinking. Retrieved from Studio Thinking website.
- Fancourt, D. (n.d.). Revolutionising mental health through the arts. [Webinar]. UCL Population Health Sciences. Retrieved from UCL Population Health Sciences website.
- Leder, H. (2004). A model of aesthetic appreciation and aesthetic judgments. British Journal of Psychology, 95(4), 489–508. [Summary in neuroaesthetics overview][1a].
- Magsamen, S., & Ross, I. (2023). Your Brain on Art: How the Arts Transform Us. New York: Random House. Retrieved from Your Brain On Art website1719.
- Project Zero. (n.d.). Valuing Thinking in the Arts. [PDF]. Harvard Graduate School of Education. Retrieved from Project Zero website.
- Chatterjee, A. (2023). Can Art Promote Understanding? A Review of the Psychology and Neuroscience of Aesthetic Cognitivism. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts. Advance online publication. https://dx.doi.org/10.1037/aca000054.
- Dutton, D. (2009). The Art Instinct: Beauty, Pleasure, and Human Evolution. Oxford University Press.
