Entering the image: a desire that has accompanied humanity since the dawn of time, lost in the mists of myth, and one that virtual reality technologies today promise to satisfy, turning the image into an immersive environment that wraps around us 360 degrees. Once the passage between the real world and the iconic world is opened, however, a two-way crossing must be expected: we penetrate the world of the image, but the image overflows into our world. The book reconstructs the history of this desire-fear, from the proto-immersive Narcissus to VR headsets, passing through trompe-l'oeil and living sculptures, mirrors and illusionistic architectures, panoramas and phantasmagorias, environmental art, 3D cinema.