I have attempted to present the various ways in which selected psychoanalytic authors have regarded the question of form and content from the perspectives of (a) the sublimation of erotic and aggressive wishes; (b) the elaboration of ego functioning; and (c) object relations theory. In particular, I have sought to consider the relevance of these theories to modern art. By implication, I have tried to demonstrate the rewards of interdisciplinary research.

Clearly, no single theory has succeeded in providing an exhaustive account of aesthetic phenomena. What I have tried to point out here is the necessity for a continuing and lively interplay between theory and practice. As art changes, aesthetic theory must develop to keep pace, and this is true as well for the relevant aspects of psychoanalysis. Each theory presented