Do Artists Suffer More from Mental Disorders? Science Weighs In
An article in Beaux Arts magazine explores the relationship between creativity and mental health, disputing the stereotype of the suffering artist. It highlights historical figures such as Vincent van Gogh and Yayoi Kusama, alongside Aristotle's assertion that madness is part of genius. Nevertheless, research conducted by Simon Kyaga in 2011 at the Karolinska Institute revealed that while individuals with bipolar disorder and their healthy siblings are prevalent in creative professions, those with schizophrenia are not, and depression does not correlate with creativity. Kay Redfield Jamison's 1993 work, 'Touched with Fire,' foreshadowed these conclusions. Additionally, a 2015 study from Iceland suggested a connection between creativity and psychiatric vulnerability, with Raphaël Gaillard's 2022 essay emphasizing that creative potential lies more with relatives than patients.
Key facts
- Aristotle asserted that no great genius exists without a part of madness.
- Simon Kyaga's 2011 study at the Karolinska Institute was published in the British Journal of Psychiatry.
- The study observed people hospitalized for schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or depression between 1973 and 2003.
- Bipolar individuals and healthy siblings of schizophrenic or bipolar patients were overrepresented in creative professions.
- Schizophrenics themselves were not more likely to exercise a creative profession.
- Depression showed no link with creativity in patients or their relatives.
- Kay Redfield Jamison's 1993 book 'Touched with Fire' discussed the link between bipolarity and creation.
- A 2015 Icelandic study in Nature Neuroscience on nearly 86,000 people found members of artistic associations carried more genetic variants associated with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder risk.
- Raphaël Gaillard's 2022 essay 'Un coup de hache dans la tête' (Grasset) argues that the link between madness and creativity is one of genetic kinship.
- The article warns against selective memory, noting many artists never entered a psychiatric hospital.
Entities
Artists
- Vincent van Gogh
- Camille Claudel
- Antonin Artaud
- Yayoi Kusama
- Aristotle
- Simon Kyaga
- Kay Redfield Jamison
- Raphaël Gaillard
Institutions
- Karolinska Institute
- British Journal of Psychiatry
- Nature Neuroscience
- Beaux Arts
- éd. Grasset
Locations
- Sweden
- Iceland