Speaker: Chester Smith, MEd, LPC. Loss and trauma in general have long been understood to play a role in the creative process for many famous artists. Using the early histories of Munch, Van Gogh, and Picasso we will look at the role of loss as a contributor to their art. In this course we will also explore psychoanalytic views on how early development influences the development of the capacity for imagination and creativity. We will identify and discuss factors involved in creative inhibitions. Also addressed in the course will be the relationship of art to the artist and viewer through the lens of the “container-contained commensal relationship” (Maniadakis, 2020) as well as exploration of the concept of art as a transitional object.