St Edward's Academic Review 2025

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To what extent is there a relationship between dyslexia and artistic creativity? Investigating the evidence for increased artistic creativity in dyslexics, and the biological and societal factors which shape their creativity. By Evie McGill Dyslexics have traits which are seen as an impairment of lexical ability, however these challenges are often accompanied with an increase in creativity​(Eide & Eide, 2012)​, potentially as a result of a different way of perceiving the world, creating opportunity to produce art from an alternative set of stimuli. This advantage has been hypothesised to stem from the differences in how dyslexics physically see art, how they process art neurologically, and even how they work from a creative perspective, taking in information from many different sources to construct new concepts ​(Ward & Kapoula, 2022)​. The thesis of this essay is that in addition to a decreased lexical ability, dyslexics are advantaged in creative and artistic ability and provide a critical service to society, driving innovation, creating, and exploring new concepts. Furthermore, I argue that dyslexia has been a driving force in artistic creativity for hundreds of years. This essay will explore the relationship between dyslexia and creativity. Specifically, whether one drives, or is in any way influenced by, the other. It will explore whether dyslexia is associated with an increase in artistic and creative ability, or whether many artists choose a creative path because their dyslexia has driven them to negatively select against following more “academic” pathways and careers. It will investigate and explore the evidence supporting a creative advantage in dyslexic individuals and will assess the biological basis of the scientific observations. Furthermore, it will explore how dyslexia may have influenced the creativity of some of the world’s most highly respected artists such as Leonardo da Vinci, and how contemporary artists view their relationship with dyslexia and its impact on their creative pursuits.

Introduction