In the mid-1990s, director Dario Argento released a thriller called The Stendhal Syndrome. It wasn’t until this week when listening to a podcast that I found out that the syndrome referenced in the title is indeed a real affliction, every bit as real as Exploding Head Syndrome.
People suffering from Stendhal Syndrome demonstrate “rapid heartbeat, dizziness, confusion and even hallucinations when an individual is exposed to art, usually when the art is particularly ‘beautiful’ or a large amount of art is in a single place.” In the movie, Dario’s daughter Asia finds herself caught inside the artwork the she sees.
This wouldn’t be a terribly fun affliction to have, I don’t think. I mean, sure, ending up in a Bob Ross painting might be kind of relaxing, but winding up in this one might be a little less pleasant.
Posted in Just Plain Odd
Brian September 20, 2007, 9:35 pm
Just imagine being in “relativity” by Escher (dubbed “Crazy Stairs” by the baby from Family Guy), or “The Persistence Of Memory” by Dali. You’d feel like you were on LSD.
Robert September 23, 2007, 4:32 am
If only it were so easy to capture Asia Argento . . .