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Gradiva is a relief from Pompeii, now in the Roman Archaeological Museum. Wilhelm Jensen, inspired by this relief, wrote a novel where the protagonist, Hanold, sees a woman lifting her skirt while walking. He names the relief Gradiva, meaning "the girl stepping forward."
Freud, fascinated by the novel, analyzed it psychoanalytically in 1907. Both Jensen and Freud were exploring similar themes with similar methods around the same time. Jensen's 1902 novel exemplified Freud's free association method.
Despite Jensen denying knowledge of Freud's work, Freud believed artists' intuition often precedes scientific discovery.
In 1937, the surrealists named their Paris art gallery Gradiva, honoring Freud and his essay "Delusions and Dreams in Jensen’s Gradiva" (1907), the first psychoanalytic analysis of a literary work. 0 reply
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