“I can’t draw.” “Painting is too hard.” “I’m just not artistic.”
I hear it all the time — from students, friends, even strangers. But when I do, I think of the artists who had every reason to quit… and didn’t. People who faced overwhelming physical disabilities, mental illness, or unimaginable life struggles — and yet still created. In fact, they didn’t just make art. For many of them, art was survival. It was therapy, expression, identity. It was everything.
So if you ever feel like giving up, or think art is only for the lucky few — let these stories shift your perspective.
Artists Who Created Despite Physical Disabilities
Frida Kahlo
Frida Kahlo – After a near-fatal bus accident, she lived with chronic pain and spinal injuries for the rest of her life. She painted mostly from bed, using a mirror above her head to create deeply personal self-portraits filled with emotion and strength.
Henri Matisse
Henri Matisse – When cancer and age made it too difficult to stand or paint traditionally, Matisse invented his own technique: “cut-outs.” Using scissors and colored paper, he created bold, joyful masterpieces from his wheelchair.
Eşref Armağan
Eşref Armağan – A blind artist from Turkey, Armağan has never seen light — yet he paints realistic landscapes and still lifes using his sense of touch and inner imagination.
Mariusz Kedzierski
A Polish artist born without arms who draws stunning hyperrealistic portraits using only his mouth or feet. His work has been exhibited internationally, challenging the limits of what most consider “possible.”
Artists Who Lived with Mental Illness
Vincent van Gogh
Vincent van Gogh – Battling depression and psychosis, van Gogh was hospitalized several times. Yet he created over 2,000 artworks, including the world-famous Starry Night. His pain became his palette.
Edvard Munch
Edvard Munch – Best known for The Scream, Munch suffered from severe anxiety, isolation, and grief. His paintings are raw, emotional landscapes of the mind — haunting, yet honest.
Yayoi Kusama
Yayoi Kusama – From childhood, Kusama experienced hallucinations and obsessive thoughts. She voluntarily lives in a psychiatric hospital in Tokyo, yet continues to produce some of the most imaginative and mesmerizing art in the world.
Louis Wain
Louis Wain – Famous for his whimsical cat illustrations, Wain’s work became increasingly abstract as his schizophrenia progressed. Today, his evolving style is seen as both a visual journey and a psychological record.
What Can We Learn From Them?
Everyone has doubts. Everyone feels like they’re not good enough sometimes. But the next time you think art is too hard for you, ask yourself this:
What did art mean to the people who had every reason to give up — and didn’t?
It meant survival. It meant hope. It meant a voice.
You don’t need to be perfect. You don’t need to be famous. You just need to start. Let your art be yours — messy, honest, emotional, joyful.
Because no one else can make the art that you can.
With creative encouragement,
Hanna Hodge
