We Shouldn’t Be Giving Too Much Credit To Mental Illness

I visited the Van Gogh 360 degrees immersive experience at Hyderabad and was disappointed

A display at the exhibition that was run in Hyderabad (India) describing how his illness led to brilliance in work. (Image owned by author)

A lot of people were unhappy about this exhibition that has come to India from Netherlands, albeit in a poorer form. While most flagged issues being poor quality, duration and unjustified ticket price, I was unhappy at spotting this in the beginning of the show.

Imagine a dancer, performs their best even when they are suffering from a fever. We would say that they did their best despite their physical shortcomings and not that their illness led to the performance.

Then why take a different stand when it comes to mental illness? No scholar can conclusively say that his art was a result of his mental disturbance.

If the artist’s name is still being used to make money, then advance the cause of creating awareness about an issue that is bothering the world today. Otherwise, it is mere exploitation and not celebration of the artist.