Understanding the nature of aesthetics requires careful experimentation and innovative ways to reveal essence and tease out aspects of aesthetics. What are key characteristics of an aesthetic sense of things? Are there common behavioral terms that standardize perceptions of art, enabling brain blood flow during mental activity to reveal neurocorrelates of aesthetic experiences?

How can art, the visual arts, take us beyond ourselves, generating a sense of awe and grandeur, opening up new ways of knowing and revealing new kinds of understanding? What is it about art that triggers the transcendent?