The Neuroscience of Beauty

Beauty isn’t just subjective—it’s hardwired into our brains. Certain visual patterns, such as symmetry and balance, are universally pleasing because they signal health, fertility, and stability.

• “Our brains are primed to seek order and harmony—it’s a survival mechanism dressed in elegance.”
• Chatterjee highlights that beautiful experiences activate the medial orbitofrontal cortex, the same area involved in processing rewards like food and love.