Psychoanalysis and Art: A Journey into the Creative Unconscious in the Third Edition
Sunday, May 17, 2026 at 6:30 PM, Il Salotto Fiorentino will host the conference presentation of the expanded and updated third edition of “Ritratti d’autore. Incontri di vita d’artista e opere” (Portraits of the Artist – Encounters with Artists’ Lives and Works), the acclaimed volume by psychoanalyst and psychotherapist Alessandra Lancellotti, published by Athenaedizioni in both Italian and English editions.
The event, titled “Psychoanalysis and Art: The Relationship Between the Unconscious and Artistic Creation,” will feature the Jungian psychoanalyst and “Ambassador of Genoa to the World”, and will be introduced by Mariella Poli, curator of the work and founder of Athenaedizioni.
The new edition further expands the editorial and scientific journey of the previous volumes, deepening the exploration of the relationship between the unconscious, neuroaesthetics, and artistic creation.
Part of the traveling cultural series Portraits of the Artist, the event follows previous presentations hosted at prestigious institutions including the State Archives of Rome and Villa Bertelli.
The Book: Where the Psyche Meets Sculpture
“Portraits of the Artist” is the result of an original editorial and scientific project in which Alessandra Lancellotti met internationally renowned sculptors — including Igor Mitoraj, Beverly Pepper, Marina Karella, Novello Finotti, Kan Yasuda, Jean-Paul Philippe, Gigi Guadagnucci, and Cynthia Sah — directly inside their ateliers and personal environments across Japan, United States, Italy, France, and Greece.
Blending psychoanalytic observation, artistic analysis, and biography, the author investigates the subtle connection between personal experience and artistic expression. The result is a work poised between art criticism and Jungian psychoanalysis, exploring the relationship between artistic creation and both the personal and archetypal unconscious.
The second edition of the volume was presented in March 2024 at the Alessandrina Hall of the State Archives of Rome in the presence of critics, psychoanalysts, and representatives of Rome’s cultural scene.
The Author’s Voice
“Even matter itself may have a soul, not only the one who shapes it.”
With this conviction, Alessandra Lancellotti conceived Portraits of the Artist: not simply an art book, but a journey into the invisible guided by Jungian psychoanalysis and neuroaesthetics.
Her method is rooted in the study of neuroaesthetics, a discipline that — as Lancellotti explains — connects “the sublime to the subliminal,” exploring the relationship between creativity, the unconscious, and artistic tension.
For the author, entering sculptors’ studios means moving beyond conventional artistic biography to access a dialogue between the visible and the invisible, between matter and the creative unconscious.
“Art and psyche are two worlds that only appear distant, yet they are profoundly interconnected.”
About the Author
Alessandra Lancellotti, born in Milan and based in Genoa, is a psychotherapist, life and career coach, and executive coach.
Since 2009, she has been a member of the International Association of Art and Psychology, dedicated to fostering dialogue between art and the sciences of the mind.
In 2023, the Mayor of Genoa awarded her the title of “Ambassador of Genoa to the World” for her international cultural and scientific contribution.
Over the course of her career, she received the Medal of Merit from the Municipality of Milan (1990, 1991, and 2000) for cultural achievements and delivered keynote lectures at the Universities of Marseille and Ajaccio.
She has also appeared as a psychologist and life coach on national television broadcasts including Rai 1, Rai 2, Sky TV, and La5.
With the essay “Cambiamente,” she won First Prize for Psychology Essay at the 6th edition of the International Literary Award “City of Sarzana.”
