CREATIVITY, GENIUS AND PSYCHOPATHOLOGY

Abstract

The first part of this conference is a revision of the actual status of the scientific literature related to the concepts of genius, creativity and their association to psychopatology. The current con­cepts will be analyzed trying to explore the relevance and the real meaning of these concepts. In a second step we will analyze new empirical evidence that sustain a specific relationship between creativity, genius and psychopathology. The second part of the conference is dedicated to the most important pathographical studies of one outstanding creative genius. We will start this second part of these studies with the exploration of the life and the multiple artistic expressions of Vincent van Gogh. The Dutch genius left a huge amount of paintings and letters that has been analyzed from diferent perspectives, including biographical explorations, psicological studies and psychiatric approaches. The analisis should help us to understand in what way the psychopatological experiences can influence the development of outstanding artistic creativity.