ART IS….well, you fill in the blank! “…not for everyone”? “…something I don’t get”? “…Amazing”? .”…a personal construct that defies understanding”? and ARTISTS ARE….”…crazy”? “…visionary”? “…weird”?
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Related Dementias (frontotemporal, Lewy Body, posterior cortical atrophy, etc) can affect people in all walks of life, and globally. Its manifestations may be as individual as each person is, artists or not, but many well-known artists have their stories told. There are several painters whose lives have been affected by dementia; three are mentioned here.
Neuroscientists have been working to explain the genius of artistic expression (folks have already tried scanning the brains of virtuoso musicians in their primes) but as far as AlzGadfly knows, artists and musicians don’t have different pathological imaging or biomarker patterns than others, once they have dementia.
Peter Max produced vividly colorful work in the counter culture era. The business of art took over, and as his career matured, he became a best seller at mass market venues like cruise ships:
Sadly, as he got older things happened that were attributed to dementia, and even the Seattle Times /NY Times reported his vulnerabilities. There were claims about how his work was produced, or exploited, and how he is being cared for now.
Chuck Close died this month, Aug 19, 2021, born in Monroe WA and evidently grew up near Everett before going to UW and Yale. He was known as a painter who did large portraits in an ultra photorealistic style, and then took advantage of “pixelation” in his portraits. He was wheelchair bound with limited use of his arms for much of his career. Academic ophthalmologists discussed his work in a JAMA article (2008).
His later career was marred by scandal and allegations of sexual harrassment. However, the author of a NYT art reappraisal of his work states that Close had frontotemporal dementia (FTD,) diagnosed by a neurologist, which can have prominent symptoms of personality and behavioral problems. He did apologize publicly about the allegations.
Willam Utermohlen was born in Philadelphia, and was a professional artist during his career. At age 61, (1995) he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. Encouraged by a nurse, he started a series of self portraits (title image, above). Evidently his last attempts (not shown) were just outlines of a head, sometimes with features erased. He died in 2007. But his work is an arresting view of the impact of his condition on his expressive art (link to an interpretation by psychoanalyst P. Pollini with earlier work and more images)
These artists bring up the question about cognitive therapies that are visually focused (art projects, virtual reality, etc). Having Art Therapy would seem to meet a lot of needs: cognitive stimulation, socialization, and even some physical activity.
Looking beyond the personal impact, service aspects and fun of such endeavors, the National Academy of Medicine, WHO and the Lancet Commissions have reviewed the science literature, and found the papers inconclusive. It may help some, not others (just like IV therapy)?
Or is that just Art? Sadly, as the three artists show, and the biographies of musicians and performance artists show, dementia seems to affect folks indiscriminately. Does having a cognitively or creatively challenging career help anyway?
The English Longitudinal Study of Ageing, >12,000 subjects, examined a statistical subset ~ 600 subjects for “cognitive reserve,” including education, occupations and leisure activities: travel, even having a pet, but its unclear if they asked about creative endeavors.
Their conclusions: “This study showed a reduced risk of dementia for individuals with a higher level of cognitive reserve, represented by higher education, complex occupations and multifaceted level of leisure activities.”….is that last thing Art again?