Antonino Ferro

This book provides a clear, thorough, and accessible introduction to the work of Antonino Ferro and draws on the clinical vignettes that punctuate his writings to show how Ferro has built on Bion’s revolutionary achievements to develop a distinctive, game-changing version of field theory in psychoanalysis. The book clarifies the phenomenological insight that the analyst and the patient together generate an ever-evolving, intersubjective field. Rather than the supposed psychology of the individual, it is this populous and multidimensional field, a co-created ‘in-between’ rich in characters and stories, that is to be explored and elaborated. The primary points of access to this new ‘multiverse’ are dream, reverie, metaphor, and imagination. A radical Negative Capability is called for, not least to help dissolve co-constructed ‘bastions’ obstructing the field’s expansion. The book sketches out the Italian and international context in which Ferro developed his thinking and addresses some key critical questions. It concludes that Ferro’s life’s work, which marries theoretical rigour with a revitalising increase in playfulness and freedom of response, is a transformational force within psychoanalysis and a major catalyst in its evolution. This important volume is rewarding reading for beginning and seasoned analysts alike, as well as for psychotherapists, counsellors, humanities scholars, and anyone interested in psychoanalysis.

'I wanted to express my deep appreciation for your remarkable work that I have had the privilege of re-reading. As I absorbed the intricacies of the book, I found myself enthralled by the meticulous precision with which you delved into my thoughts, respecting my words and traversing each conceptual junction with unwavering patience. The profound essence of certain landscapes took on new meaning for me through the pages of this book. I would like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to you for your respect and understanding of the ideas put forth by complex authors. My sincere thanks for your invaluable contribution.'Antonino Ferro, President of the Italian Psychoanalytic Society, Training and Supervising Analyst in the Italian Psychoanalytic Society, the American Psychoanalytic Association, and the International Psychoanalytical Association'From the first moment I encountered Antonino Ferro's psychoanalysis I was infected by his enthusiasm and extraordinary creativity. There are several very good authors in the world of contemporary psychoanalysis who can be placed in the area that we broadly call relational, but despite their originality they can always be reabsorbed into the so-called mainstream. Not so Ferro. His thinking is revolutionary. No one like him has so thoroughly changed the way we understand the therapeutic relationship and practice psychoanalysis. Always proceeding with courage, consistency, great intelligence and a very human sense of humor, he has helped revitalize a noble art, but one that sometimes runs the risk of being reduced to ritualistic repetition of empty formulas and where deference to Freud's genius resembles more the litany of a religious rite than the exercise of a true love for research about the essence of what makes us human. It is about time that a monograph devoted entirely to him and his thought saw the light of day. For this we must be grateful to Robert Snell for, the author of this beautiful book. It is easy to predict that it will be a great success among all psychotherapists, psychoanalysts, humanities scholars and educated people interested in psychoanalysis.'Giuseppe Civitarese, MD. PhD, SPI, APsaA, IPA member, author of Sublime Subjects: Aesthetic Experience and Intersubjectivity in Psychoanalysis (2017, Routledge)'After exploring the relationship between post-Bionian Field Theory and Cèzanne's work, with various explorations in the world of art and philosophy, in his book Cèzanne and the Post-Bionian Field, Robert Snell publishes a complete exploratory manual of Ferro's work. The knowledge of the psychoanalytical, philosophical and linguistic roots of BFT allows him to paint a harmonious picture of the post-Bionian Field Model and the evolution of Ferro's theoretical-clinical thought, without hiding problems and controversial points. The complete mastery of Bion's work and the long atten

Robert Snell (Ph.D.) is a psychoanalytic psychotherapist in private practice, a member of the British Psychoanalytic Council and the British Psychotherapy Foundation, and an Honorary Senior Research Fellow at Roehampton University, UK.