Aesthetic Intelligence: The Ability To Perceive Beauty

It is not easy to describe the concept of beauty. Countless thinkers and philosophers have tried, but with varying degrees of success. Is there an aesthetic standard? A combination of colors and shapes? A feeling? Or is it a kind of spiritual joy? The Italian psychotherapist and philosopher Piero Ferrucci proposes a broader understanding of beauty with his theory of aesthetic intelligence.

Violence against animals, child abuse, war, disasters and Mother Earth rage. It is often necessary to see destructive ugliness in order to understand beauty. Seeing ugly things also makes you understand that beauty is not just something superficial, emotional or ambiguous. No matter what beauty is, it seems to have a unique ability to heal the soul.

The beauty is confusing because some people may see an item as extremely beautiful, while others do not. Many times one perceives beauty where another cannot. This is what we mean by “aesthetic intelligence”. They see beauty where others do not see anything at all.

Aesthetic intelligence consists of three main components that define the quality of the aesthetic perception. Basically, these are aesthetic reach , the depth of the experience and the ability to integrate beauty . These three variables exist in different ways and to varying degrees within each of us.

Those who have a broader aesthetic reach can experience beauty in more situations. For example, there are people who simply can not experience any beauty in music. But they may experience beauty in poetry, movies, landscapes, home decor, or in the sound of the rain pounding on the roof.

These people can experience beauty in a thousand seemingly simple situations in everyday life. This way of understanding beauty is not common to everyone.

The perception of beauty also varies from person to person. Experiencing beauty can “touch” someone in a subtle way because they can see that there is a certain beauty there, but that it does not affect them so much. They experience it as something “external”, and it does not significantly affect them.

Then there are times when beauty permeates your whole being. Beauty takes over and injects emotions that are difficult to explain because they are so intense. You may not even know how to explain how this beauty makes you feel. This is a very intense feeling of joy.

The ability to integrate the beauty you perceive explains why some beauty “touches” while others make you “change”. Integrative beauty means that beauty not only touches you but it also transforms you. In other words, it changes your thought patterns.

People with a narrower aesthetic reach also live in a world that is more narrow and limited. Not only that, but they also often have a less flexible personality. There seems to be a link between falling into this category and a person’s ability to adapt to new environments and circumstances. This means that these people have a harder time dealing with these changes.

On the contrary, people with a wide aesthetic range develop more curious personalities. They are more likely to learn and welcome new ideas and projects. These people also have an amazing ability to be captivated by and enjoy experiences. They are much more flexible when it comes to situations they have to deal with, other people and themselves.

People with a wide aesthetic range have a better ability to form bonds with other people, have better self-esteem and a much more intense spirit of life.

Surrounding yourself with beauty is something central and important to many people. In fact, it is necessary to be happy. In his book  Beauty and the Soul: The Extraordinary Power of Everyday Beauty to Heal Your Life  , Piero Ferrucci claims that by depriving oneself of beauty one can suffer from negative emotions. These include depression, restlessness, unexplained aggression and a deep sense of meaninglessness.