Article http://dx.doi.org/10.26855/jpbs.2025.12.004

Empathy in Sacred Paintings of Leonardo da Vinci

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João Vítor Bolsoni Rampon, Samira Schultz Mansur*

Federal University of Santa Catarina, CEP 88040-900, Florianópolis, Brazil.

*Corresponding author: Samira Schultz Mansur

Published: November 5,2025

Abstract

Empathy, understood in its emotional, cognitive, and motivational dimensions, reveals itself in a singular way in the Renaissance sacred paintings of Leonardo da Vinci, in which the expression of human affects intertwines with the spiritual dimension. In his religious compositions, da Vinci amplifies the illustration of biblical passages by translating with sensitivity and technical rigor the emotional complexity of the portrayed figures. Taking into account the cognitive and emo-tional expressiveness of Renaissance sacred paintings, the main objective of this manuscript is to understand the representation of empathy in sacred paintings of Leonardo da Vinci. The specific objectives are to explain the emotional and cog-nitive biases presented by the sacred paintings of Leonardo and verify the tech-niques used in his paintings to evoke empathy in spectators. This research is ex-ploratory and bibliographic in nature, involving a literature review, reading, logical organization of data, thematic discussion, and writing, with a theoretical–interpretive approach. Da Vinci meticulous investigation of human anatomy, allied with the mastery of innovative techniques, allowed him to describe ges-tures, gazes, and facial expressions among the characters capable of communicating emotional states in a subtle and intense way. The aesthetic experience provided by his paintings requires from the observer an additional involvement to sensory perception, mobilizing processes of emotion and cognition to understand the symbolic interpretation of his art. Not only do Leonardo's sacred works invite aesthetic contemplation, but also incite the spectator to act in an empathic manner and share the human and spiritual drama symbolized, establishing a link between art, emotion, and cognition. It is suggested that the arrangement of Leonardo’s pictorial narrative and the techniques used in his sacred art stimulate the appearance of empathic abilities from the imagination and emotional and mental projection of the observer who contemplates his work.

Keywords

Empathy; Emotion; Cognition; Sacred Art; Leonardo da Vinci

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How to cite this paper

Empathy in Sacred Paintings of Leonardo da Vinci

How to cite this paper: João Vítor Bolsoni Rampon, Samira Schultz Mansur. (2025). Empathy in Sacred Paintings of Leonardo da Vinci. Journal of Psychology and Behavioral Studies1(2), 82-90.

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.26855/jpbs.2025.12.004