Van Gogh's Pathography and the Influence of Illness on Painting

Abstract

There are many theories about Van Gogh's illness, including temporal lobe epilepsy, schizophrenia, Meniere's disease, manic depression, digitalis/absinthe poisoning, and acute intermittent porphyria, which, along with the truth of the ear-cutting incident, remain a great mystery. Van Gogh is often described as an "artist of madness and passion," but except for seven episodes of severe mental disturbance, his extraordinary creativity was maintained to the end. Reading "Van Gogh's Letters" reveals a very thoughtful and intelligent Van Gogh, far from being insane. Perhaps the essence of Van Gogh is his resilience to illness. It might come from the support of his family, his trusting relationship with his doctors, and his efforts to understand himself as a sick person. In my opinion, there is much to learn from Van Gogh regarding supporting people with neurological diseases.