Such a sprawling subject but two issues do spring to mind. The exploitation of the genuinely troubled and the cold eyed exploitation of the reputation of artistic merit that the label of madness can bring.
In the art world those considered to be making outsider art are characterised by their lack of concern over what happens to their work after it is completed, its creation is their only concern, an act of exocism. There are dealers in work from asylums and community care groups where people hunt for bargains. Not a comfortable image. However I cannot think of many recording artists where there is a lack of concern for their completed work. What is the saying? Their eccentricity stops where their income begins.
I suspect that it has become a cliche and that, apart from a very few exceptions, those who have created highly regarded work through madness would have created a greater one if not so afflicted.
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