What are the challenges scholars face when considering the mental illness of artists?

For this assignment you will research the mental health of either Frida Kahlo or Vincent Van Gogh.

Both of these artists created many self-portraits. Your job is to determine whether we can see signs of mental illness within her or his self-portrait.

You must then select two articles to analyze their work:

One of these articles should be about one or more of her or his self-portraits.
The other article should be about assessing mental illness through observation OR an article discussing the mental illness of either Kahlo or Van Gogh.
Requirements:

Analyze one or more self-portraits by either Kahlo or Van Gogh. Do you believe the portrait reflects how the artist was feeling at the time? Why or why not?
Argue whether you believe it possible to diagnose someone who is no longer living based on an image of them? How?
What are the challenges scholars face when considering the mental illness of artists?
Please see the rubric for how this assignment will be graded.

Art and Mental Illness (1)
Criteria
-Solid Sources
Discussion of at least two written sources that support your ideas.
-Argument
Strong argument in which the student explains the validity of diagnosing a dead artist. Discussion of the challenges faced when considering the mental illness of artists.
-Self-Portrait analysis
Analysis of one or more self-portraits by the artist that supports student’s argument.
-Bibliography
Identification of sources and images using APA style

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