Autistic art

Autistic art is art created by autistic artists which captures or conveys a variety of autistic experiences. Art by autistic artists has long been shown in separate venues from artists without disabilities.[1] The art of autistic people has often been considered part of outsider art.[1] There might be relationships between autism and talent due to the sensory hypersensitivity and the tendency of autistic people to concentrate more deeply on details.[2] The works of some autistic artists have featured in art publications and documentaries and been exhibited in mainstream galleries. Now there are many autistic art programs and projects founded by nonprofit organizations, autistic artists or other institutions to help autistic people to express themselves and promote autistic art.[3]

Overview

Autistic people have various differences in brain regions involving emotional processing, social cognition, face recognition, and executive functioning. They may hyper- and hypo-sensitive to sensory stimuli, even to the extent that they can't participate in normal social activities. For example, a child with autism may not be able to attend a movie due to the crowded and noisy environment.[4] On the other hand, this kind of sensory hyper sensitivity may make an autistic person much more perceptive than an ordinary person. The extreme attention to detail that is common in autistic people may result talent in mathematics, art or other fields.[5] Autistic persons who have talent in art are often outsiders in the art community. Unlike with common art, there is seldom any tradition or academic criteria in their creations. Each has their own style of art which, which may present the inner world of an autistic person.[6]

People

• Stephen Wiltshire (b. 1974) -- typically depicts cityscapes in his work.[7] He is one of the most famous autistic artists and his art usually surrounds architectural features.
• Donna Williams (1963–2017) -- focused on figurative works with an emphasis on movement.
• Larry Bissonnette[8] (b. 1957)
• Henriett Seth F.[9] (b. 1980) -- creates abstract, highly patterned works.
• Gilles Tréhin (b. 1972) -- a self-taught artist who creates largely architectural drawings in pencil. Many of his sketches are of an imaginary world called Urville.[10]
• George Widener[11] (b. 1962) -- creates detailed imaginary worlds that are displayed in Ricco Maresca Gallery in New York, New York.[12]
• Richard Wawro (1952–2006)
• Jonathan Lerman (b. 1987)
• govy (b. 1981)[13]
• Susan Te Kahurangi King

Projects

Drawing Autism

Drawing Autism is a book collection of images and artwork created by people who are diagnosed with autism. This collection features creations of more than 50 autistic artists around the world and illustrates the potential for art of autistic persons as well as an insight into some of the characteristics of autism. The founder of the project is Jill Mullin, who is a board-certified behavior analyst. During her 15 years of experience working with autistic people, Mullin has found that many of them are talented in mathematics, science and art.[14]

The Art of Autism

The Art of Autism is a nonprofit organization which empowers autistic people and their families through the arts which includes visual arts, music, blogging, poetry, dance, and other art forms. They provide various opportunities for autistic artists to display their creations and share their personal stories as well as for merchandising the art works. In addition, they are dedicated to fostering the importance of art for autistic people and offering mentorship opportunities.[15]

See also

• Autism rights movement
• Autism: The Musical, a 2007 documentary about autistic children writing and appearing in their own play
• Life, Animated, a 2016 documentary featuring Disney fan art by autistic Owen Suskind
• Neurodiversity

References

1. AutismConnect - Museums thrust autistic artists into the mainstream
2. Baron-Cohen, Simon; Ashwin, Emma; Ashwin, Chris; Tavassoli, Teresa; Chakrabarti, Bhismadev (2009-05-27). "Talent in autism: hyper-systemizing, hyper-attention to detail and sensory hypersensitivity". Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 364 (1522): 1377–1383. doi:10.1098/rstb.2008.0337. ISSN 0962-8436. PMC 2677592. PMID 19528020.
3. "Artwork". autism speaks. Retrieved April 20, 2020.
4. "Autism, Art, and Accessibility to Theater". AMA Journal of Ethics. 18 (12): 1232–1240. 2016-12-01. doi:10.1001/journalofethics.2016.18.12.imhl1-1612. ISSN 2376-6980.
5. Baron-Cohen, Simon; Ashwin, Emma; Ashwin, Chris; Tavassoli, Teresa; Chakrabarti, Bhismadev (2009-05-27). "Talent in autism: hyper-systemizing, hyper-attention to detail and sensory hypersensitivity". Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 364 (1522): 1377–1383. doi:10.1098/rstb.2008.0337. ISSN 0962-8436. PMC 2677592. PMID 19528020.
6. Cardinal, Roger (2009-05-27). "Outsider Art and the autistic creator". Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 364 (1522): 1459–1466. doi:10.1098/rstb.2008.0325. PMC 2677583. PMID 19528031.
7. "Stephen Wiltshire - Buy original drawings and limited editions". Stephen Wiltshire. Retrieved 2020-03-20.
8. Smith, Roberta (1999-01-22). "ART REVIEW; Redefining a Style As It Catches On". The New York Times. Retrieved 2010-04-26.
9. Henriett Seth F. - Rain Girl | Wisconsin Medical Society Archived February 25, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
10. Wisconsin Medical Society Archived December 14, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
11. George Widener - A Multiply Gifted Savant | Wisconsin Medical Society Archived December 17, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
12. "George Widener". Ricco Maresca Gallery. Retrieved 2020-03-20.
13. "govy". govy. Retrieved 2020-03-20.
14. Mullin, Jill. Drawing autism. Grandin, Temple. New York, NY. ISBN 978-1-61775-198-1. OCLC 833301442.
15. "The art of autism". Retrieved May 6, 2020.