interesting mysteries of art ?

[spursfan]

I've been doing some research and writing on mysteries of art, such as what mental illness did van gogh suffer from ?, or the claim by patricia cornwell that the artist walter sickert was jack the ripper.

i was just wondering what other mysteries of the art world are out there ?

[Grandpa Greenman]

I have read Van Gogh had syphilis, but I think he may have been autistic. I also read he may have had synesthesia. I remember reading about him hitting notes on a piano and calling out colors.

Most artist I have known (and I have known a lot of them) usually don't have mental illness anymore than the general population, they just seen the world in a different way.

[glorybebe]

I have read Van Gogh had syphilis, but I think he may have been autistic. I also read he may have had synesthesia. I remember reading about him hitting notes on a piano and calling out colors.

Most artist I have known (and I have known a lot of them) usually don't have mental illness anymore than the general population, they just seen the world in a different way.

In my Fine Arts class, my instructor told us that the artists would get a fine tip on their paint brushes by using their lips. With things like cadmium in them, there was a high percentage of young deaths aming artists, as well as strange behaviour.

[spursfan]

Its been suggested that van gogh may have suffered from any number of disorders, such as sunstroke, lead poisoning from his paint as he liked to lick the tips of his brushes (like you write glorybebe), bipolar disorder, epilepsy, borderline personality disorder, schizphrenia etc.

The poor man was certainly tormented and its so sad he killed himself, his art is amazing.

A new biography of vincent by steven naifeh suggests vincent was accidentally shot by someone else, and didn't kill himself. The biography is a straight, mainstream book but i think this theory unlikely.