The Changing Depictions of Mental Illness in Art History

Essay from the year 2019 in the subject Art - History of Art, grade: %80, RMIT University, course: Bachelor of Fine Arts, language: English, abstract: This essay demonstrates the progression of psychological depictions in art, and thus representations of mental illness throughout art history. Early Renaissance artists such as Vittore Carpaccio and Matthias Grunewald interpret mental illness through the lens of religious and spiritual imagery. Later Renaissance artists such as Albrecht Durer were impacted by the changing social, cultural and economic landscape of the 16th century. Romantic artists such as Fransisco Goya and Theodore Gericault use romantic imagery and realism to depict man's internal melancholy and anxiety. The cultural momentum of the Weimar Period heralded an era of "Outsider Art". Resulting in a cultural landscape that both feared and revered work made by those with mental illness.