In this book, Sanda Iliescu brings aesthetics back into the conversation, exploring the subject through compelling examinations of lived experiences of works of art and architecture.

Iliescu examines the ways we look deeply at art and how to bring more meaning to our experience, forming in-depth discussions often overlooked. Focusing on the concept of the figure-ground problem, she challenges this foundational Gestalt principle’s presumed hierarchies and probes its complexity and nuance, showing how a new and more dynamic understanding can enrich our multisensory experiences of art, architecture, and the world around us. Featuring extensive images throughout, it discusses artworks by Rembrandt, Matisse, Eva Hesse, Louise Nevelson, Helen Frankenthaler, and David Hammons; the architecture of Zaha Hadid, Weiss/Manfredi, Latz+Partner, and Peter Zumthor; and non-Western works such as a thirteenth century Chinese vase, the dry garden at Ryoanji, and Hasegawa Tōhaku’s Pine Trees.

Personal and engaging, this book is for a wide audience of those practicing, studying or with an interest in the creative fields, from beginners to seasoned professionals.