Matisse adapted his artistic methods to suit his life in a wheelchair. He started making artwork out of coloured paper shapes. Matisse would cut out the shapes and direct an assistant where to stick the piece on a large piece of paper mounted on the wall.
A battle with cancer in the 1940s left artist Henri Matisse confined to a wheelchair.
Michelangelo likely suffered from high-functioning autism, called Asperger's syndrome, says Arshad. Some of his evidence: The men in Michelangelo's family “displayed autistic traits” and mood disturbances.
Toulouse Lautrec (19th century), one of the most famous impressionists, suffered from skeletal system disease. Because of her, he was short, had a deformed figure and walked with a cane. Such information about the artist is conveyed by his self-portraits [5].
She painted her injuries and disabilities
Kahlo said, “I paint myself because I am so often alone and because I am the subject I know best.” Her raw and emotional self-portraits often showed both her physical and psychological wounds from her life and accident with themes of pain, disability, injury and fragility.
Childhood polio left her disabled, and the bus accident in her adolescence left her body permanently damaged. The crash fractured her spine and ribs and shattered her pelvis. Many of her paintings make it clear that she lived a large portion of her life in a body cast and supportive braces.
"I suffered two grave accidents in my life," she once said, "One in which a streetcar knocked me down … The other accident is Diego."
Probably the most popular example of the "mad artist" stereotype was none other than famously talented painter Vincent van Gogh. "I put my heart and my soul into my work, and lost my mind in the process," he once said. Van Gogh was said to have suffered from depression, anxiety, and bipolar disorder.
At age 18, Frida Kahlo was injured in a bus accident in her hometown of Mexico City. Her spinal column, along with her collarbone, ribs, and pelvis, were broken in the accident. For a month following, she remained in bed.
Judith Scott is an internationally-recognized fiber artist who also had Down Syndrome. She created over 160 sculptures and pieces of art at the Creative Growth Center in Oakland, California.
Michelangelo decided to represent the divine breath of life with God's and Adam's fingers almost touching each other. This famous gesture represents the creation of the first man with the Creator's index finger ready to strike a spark upon contact with Adam's hand.
Asperger's Syndrome, a form of Autism Spectrum Disorder, is a developmental disorder. Young people with Asperger's Syndrome have a difficult time relating to others socially and their behavior and thinking patterns can be rigid and repetitive.
The latent power one feels is extraordinary. Michelangelo is famous for saying that he worked to liberate the forms imprisoned in the marble. He saw his job as simply removing what was extraneous. This endless struggle of man to free himself from his physical constraints is a metaphor of the flesh burdening the soul.
Vincent van Gogh: Dutch Painter 1853 – 1890
We all know the infamous story of this post-impressionist painter cutting off his own ear, but did you know he had temporal lobe epilepsy and well as suspected bipolar disorder? He was born with a brain lesion made more severe through his extensive absinthe intake.
Visual artists: John Bramblitt is an American blind painter and first blind muralist. Eşref Armağan is a Turkish artist born without eyes. Keith Salmon is a visually impaired artist working in Ayrshire, Scotland.
1. Stephen Hawking. Arguably one of the world's greatest minds, the late physicist and author Stephen Hawking had an incredible impact on the world.
The Mexican artist Frida Kahlo (1907–1954) is one of the most celebrated artists of the 20th century. Although famous for her colorful self-portraits and associations with celebrities Diego Rivera and Leon Trotsky, less known is the fact that she had lifelong chronic pain.
Frida Kahlo is a celebrated Surrealist artist. However, she also suffered chronic pain for most of her life.
Thankfully, those who suffer from a spinal cord injury do have the possibility of some recovery with treatment. The sooner rehabilitation starts, the more improvement you will see. Differing types of therapy may cause the brain to develop the ability to retrain the body toward mobility.
One of the most known "tortured artists" is Vincent van Gogh, who experts consider to have suffered from psychosis. Another figure matching the description of the "tortured artist" is Ludwig van Beethoven, who, after losing his hearing, became increasingly reclusive and apathetic towards society.
Artists like Francisco de Goya, Vincent van Gogh, Edvard Munch, Frida Kahlo, and Mark Rothko likely suffered from mental health problems at some point in their lives. Their art uniquely reflects their struggle and psychological condition.
Perhaps the most legendary tragic figure in art history is Vincent van Gogh, who rounds out our list. Born into an upper-middle class family, van Gogh was a serious, quiet and unhappy child who took to art at an early age. Despite his family's help, he found it difficult to hold a job as an adult.
During 1946–1950 Frida Kahlo underwent 8 operations to her spine. The first of them was performed in the USA in June 1946, and Kahlo describes it in a letter to her old friend Alejandro Gomez Arias: 'So the big operation is now behind me. [...] I have two huge scars on my back in this shape' [quoted from [4].
Kahlo's inability to bear a child, after the injuries she suffered in a tram crash, was painfully close to her. She had had one abortion when it was clear that her health would not allow her to go through with the pregnancy. When she became pregnant again a couple of years later, she miscarried.
A severe bus accident at the age of 18 left Kahlo in lifelong pain. Confined to bed for three months following the accident, Kahlo began to paint. She started to consider a career as a medical illustrator, as well, which would combine her interests in science and art.