To See The World Differently And Beautifully: Neurodivergent Artists Throughout History

By Xander Evans

Art requires a lot of an artist. Skill, creativity, intelligence, and passion are critical things for an artist to have, and they must have it in spades. The most important thing an artist must have is a unique perspective on the world. Some of these perspectives are shaped by historical events, like Francisco Goya’s “The Third of May 1808,” a grim painting commemorating Spanish resistance to Napoleon. Others are shaped by deeply personal experiences, like how Edvard Munch’s “The Scream” was inspired by both Munch’s personal anxiety and a color he viewed during a particular Norwegian sunset[1].  Disability, be it physical or mental, can also inform an artist’s perspective on the world and shape how they express their art. 

Before this article continues, I want to take a moment to provide a disclaimer. It is impossible to retroactively diagnose historical figures who have passed away with disability or neurodivergence. Descriptions from these times can be vague and unscientific, which provides a degree of uncertainty. Issac Newton, for example, has evidence both supporting and denying potential autism [2][3]. While every artist listed in this article I believe has ample evidence that proves their being neurodivergent, there is no definitive way to determine their particular cocktail of neurodivergence. 

Van Gogh is one of the most famous painters in history, and had a famously difficult life. Events in Van Gogh’s life led many to suggest that he suffered from bipolar depression and other comorbid conditions, evidenced by accounts of shifting mood, prolonged periods of depression and mania, and moments of apparent psychosis. Van Gogh’s early artistic career was not successful, and he was observed to be very depressed after a romantic failure and shut himself away from the world. After this, he turned single mindedly to religion and extremely enthusiastically pursued a career as a preacher, impulsively giving away his earthly possessions and becoming obsessed with religion[4].  He would have a similar experience later in his life, with his mania (which also followed a depression observed after a romantic failure) pushing him towards art. Evidence also suggests that Van Gogh had traits of borderline personality disorder, including impulsivity and unstable interpersonal relationships[5].  These apparent disorders, along with his abuse of alcohol (potentially to self-medicate) could potentially explain the popular depiction of Van Gogh as a depressed person.

Edgar Allan Poe is a poet who needs very little introduction. His dark, gothic horror stories inspired many and captivated America. The circumstances around his death have also become a fascination to many, with many assuming his premature passing to be caused by alcoholism. While some suggest that Poe’s death and symptoms such as hallucinations and paranoia were caused by drinking, as he was known for drinking, there is considerable evidence that his alcoholism was exaggerated by those who hated him in life[6][7]. This then shifts the potential cause of Poe’s symptoms to a neurological cause: epilepsy. More specifically, Poe was observed to have sudden changes in behavior that match a complex partial seizure, as well as symptoms such as hallucinations and paranoia that are consistent with the psychosis that can follow seizures. Poe’s writing also suggests the presence of epilepsy, as moments in stories like The Premature Burial and The Pit and the Pendulum describe terrifying moments that are oddly similar to seizure symptoms[8]. Had he lived in a time where people had a better understanding of seizures, Edgar Allan Poe’s death may not have been as tragic as it was.

The famed contemporary artist Andy Warhol is known for being a leading figure in the “pop art” movement and being a prominent lgbtq+ artist. Warhol was also thought to be potentially on the autism spectrum, with a strong adherence to uniformity and socially avoidant behaviors. Warhol’s most famous pieces of art, including the Campbell’s Soup paintings and his Maralyn Monroe series, show a strong adherence to uniformity. Interviews with the press show a discomfort with social settings that is also typical of those on the autism spectrum[9]. The composer Ian Stewart, who had autism himself, suspected that Warhol had autism because of their shared way of purchasing underwear; carefully inspecting one pair very thoroughly before buying many pairs of the same underwear. Stewart observed many traits in Warhol that not only suggested autism but paralleled his own autistic experience[10].

Artists with disabilities are not just a thing of the past but exist in the present day.  Stephen Wiltshire, a painter who can recreate landscapes through memory, is autistic.  He can be considered an artistic version of Raymond Babbit from Rain Man, a movie that Wiltshire has watched and enjoyed many times[11].  Halsey, a singer and painter, possesses several physical disabilities including Ehlers Danlos syndrome, a connective tissue disorder which can make heavy lifting and cause chronic pain[12].  Halsey is not the first performer to have Ehlers Danlos, with some suggesting that both Michael Jackson and Elvis Prestley having some form of the disorder as well[13]. 

When it comes to history like this, which speculates on personal conditions of well known people throughout history that would be impossible to know today, like undiagnosed disability or sexuality that was never made known to the public, there is always the question of “Why does this matter?”  Van Gogh, DaVinci, Dostoevsky, all of these people were extremely talented artists who made a massive mark on history, and them having a disability of any sort does not change that.  The answer to the “why” question is that representation matters.  Representation shows that people outside of the norm, in this case those who are not neurotypical, not only can contribute amazing things to the world, but have.  It is to show that disability does not preclude greatness, and that some of the greatest artists prove this.  It also shows that people with disabilities did not just appear in the modern day.  Stephen Wiltshire is not the first disabled painter, nor is Halsey the first disabled performer.  

Sources

[1] Stańska, Zuzanna. “The Mysterious Street from Edvard Munch’s the Scream.” DailyArt Magazine, 12 Dec. 2024, www.dailyartmagazine.com/the-mysterious-road-of-the-scream-by-edvard-munch/. 

[2] “Can the Discovery of Gravity Be Attributed to Autism?” Applied Behavioral Analysis | How to Become an Applied Behavior Analyst, 25 May 2022, www.appliedbehavioranalysisedu.org/can-the-discovery-of-gravity-be-attributed-to-newtons-supposed-autism/. 

[3] Keynes, Milo 2008 Balancing Newton's mind: his singular behaviour and his madness of 1692–93Notes Rec. R. Soc.62289–300http://doi.org/10.1098/rsnr.2007.0025

[4] Blumer, Dietrich. “The Illness of Vincent van Gogh.” American Journal of Psychiatry, vol. 159, no. 4, American Psychiatric Publishing, Apr. 2002, pp. 519–526, doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.159.4.519. April 2002. 

[5] Nolen, W.A., van Meekeren, E., Voskuil, P. et al. “New vision on the mental problems of Vincent van Gogh; results from a bottom-up approach using (semi-)structured diagnostic interviews.” Int J Bipolar Disord 8, 30 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40345-020-00196-z 

[6] Meyers, Jeffrey. Edgar Allan Poe: His Life and Legacy. Cooper Square Press, 2000. 

[7] Hoffman, Daniel. Poe Poe Poe Poe Poe Poe Poe. Louisiana State University Press, 1999. 

[8] Bogousslavsky, Julien, and François Boller. Neurological Disorders in Famous Artists. Karger, 2005. 

[9] “Autistic Individuals in the Arts: Was Warhol Autistic?” Neurodiversity, intr100neurodsp18burk.sites.wm.edu/2018/02/18/famous-people-with-asd-was-warhol-autistic/. Accessed 18 Feb. 2025. 

[10] Bogousslavsky, Julien. Neurological Disorders in Famous Artists. Part 3. Karger, 2010. 

[11] “My Secret Life: Stephen Wiltshire, Artist, 34.” The Independent, Independent Digital News and Media, 24 Jan. 2009, www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/art/features/my-secret-life-stephen-wiltshire-artist-34-1488487.html. 

[12] TodayShow. “What Is Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome? Halsey Reveals Diagnosis.” TODAY.Com, TODAY, 11 May 2022, www.today.com/health/womens-health/ehlers-danlos-syndrome-rcna28215. 

[13] “Celebrities with Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (EDS) and Hypermobility.” The EDS Clinic, www.eds.clinic/articles/famous-celebrities-with-hypermobility-and-ehlers-danlos-syndrome-eds. Accessed 16 Feb. 2025.