"As with all of the people we suspect of having had neurodivergent traits, from Alan Turing to Isaac Newton, it's impossible to provide retrospective diagnoses, so we can only offer conjecture about that. But if Turner did have significant neurodiverse traits, I imagine they would have had quite a profound impact on his art and thinking. Packham, an ambassador for the National Autistic Society, pointed to Turner's exceptional keenness for detail and his hyperfocus,"
"Turner was clearly a man who, today, we would say had focused interest. I'm still happy to call it obsession. He repeatedly returned to various locations he landscaped for a number of reasons one being that he was probably never satisfied with what he'd achieved there. I also see similarity with his attention to detail and his meticulous vision, which was particularly exemplified when he was younger, with his less impressionistic work."
Analysis of Turner's 37,000 sketches, drawings and watercolours builds an unprecedented psychological portrait suggesting childhood trauma and neurodivergence shaped his singular vision. Contributors include actor Timothy Spall (who portrayed Turner in Mike Leigh's Mr Turner), artists Tracey Emin and John Akomfrah, musician Ronnie Wood, psychotherapist Orna Guralnik and naturalist Chris Packham. Packham cautioned that retrospective diagnoses are impossible and offered conjecture about neurodivergent traits influencing Turner. Packham, an ambassador for the National Autistic Society, pointed to Turner's keenness for detail, sustained hyperfocus and repeated return to locations, noting similarities to autistic thinking and an obsessive, meticulous approach evident in his earlier, less impressionistic work.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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