engleski

Neurological disorders in famous painters

Development of the neuroscience has brought the new insight in the art making processes. Results of the studies have showed that creative people have less prominent hemispheric dominance. Since the centers for visual conception are located in the right brain hemisphere, it was found that patients with right-sided brain lesion have difficulties imagining a picture of a named object. Many examples are showing that left hemisphere suppresses creative states and processes. Some patients with left-sided brain lesions developed afterwards artistic skills for playing a musical instrument, painting or dancing. Katherine Sherwood, professor of art suffered a severe dominant hemisphere stroke, but she continued to paint with her left hand. She herself describes her recent work as unburdened and uninhibited by consciousness. Lovis Corinth suffered stroke with left side hemiparesis that leaded to change from his naturalistic style of art to expressionistic phase. After stroke he started to use more vibrant colors and created very powerful portraits and landscapes. The important role in the work of Vincent van Gogh have his neuropsychiatric conditions. Many authors are speculating if his paintings in the last years of life are influenced by epilepsy, migraine or bipolar disorder. The great Italian painter Giorgio de Chirico, famous for his unique style of art suffered from migraine. This experience resulted in paintings that regularly present migraine aura and symptoms. Although it can be concluded that the creativity is uninhibited in some neurological disorders, unfortunately dementia in moderate and severe stage of disease leads to extreme changes in artists working pattern and to incapacity to paint. De Kooning was diagnosed with Alzheimer disease in the 1980s with rapid and impressive decline of his work quality. Making art is a magnificent human talent, the complex interrelationship of delicate brain function. Neuroscience offers numerous explanations about the amazing phenomenon how neurological illness can change and even improve artistic expression.

painters; neurological disorder; dominant hemisphere

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