The Exact Mind: An Artist With Asperger Syndrome

An Exact Mind

of related interest Making Sense of the Unfeasible My Life Journey with Asperger Syndrome Marc Fleisher ISBN 1 84310 165 3

Freaks, Geeks and Asperger Syndrome A User Guide to Adolescence Luke Jackson ISBN 1 84310 098 3

Nobody Nowhere The Remarkable Autobiography of an Autistic Girl Donna Williams ISBN 1 85302 718 9

Asperger Syndrome A Guide for Parents and Professionals Tony Attwood ISBN 1 85302 577 1

Bright Splinters of the Mind A Personal Story of Research with Autistic Savants Beate Hermelin ISBN 1 85302 931 9

An Exact Mind An Artist with Asperger Syndrome

Peter Myers, with Simon Baron-Cohen and Sally Wheelwright

Jessica Kingsley Publishers London and Philadelphia

Parts of the chapter entitled ‘An Artist who can teach Scientists’ originally appeared in Baron-Cohen, Wheelwright, Scahill, Lawson, & Spong 2001b. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any material form (including photocopying or storing it in any medium by electronic means and whether or not transiently or incidentally to some other use of this publication) without the written permission of the copyright owner except in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 or under the terms of a licence issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London, England W1T 4LP. Applications for the copyright owner’s written permission to reproduce any part of this publication should be addressed to the publisher. Warning: The doing of an unauthorised act in relation to a copyright work may result in both a civil claim for damages and criminal prosecution.

The right of Peter Myers, Simon Baron-Cohen and Sally Wheelwright to be identified as authors of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

First published in the United Kingdom in 2004 by Jessica Kingsley Publishers 116 Pentonville Road London N1 9JB, UK and 400 Market Street, Suite 400. Philadelphia, PA 19106, USA www.jkp.com

Text copyright © Simon Baron-Cohen, Sally Wheelwright and Peter Myers 2004 Illustrations copyright © Peter Myers 2004

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data A CIP catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

ISBN-13: 978 1 84310 032 4 ISBN-10: 1 84310 032 0 ISBN pdf eBook: 1 84642 001 6 Printed and bound by Graphic Studio, Verona, Italy

Contents Preface

9

Acknowledgements

11

1.

About Peter

13

2.

Colour plates

31

3.

An Artist who can teach Scientists

49

Further Reading

79

Black and white images

Colour plates

1.

Mindflowers

7

1.

Untitled

33

2.

Flowers + Fish

8

2.

Bowling Green – South Park, Darlington

34

3.

Untitled

10

3.

Hidden Jungle Jamboree

35

4.

Disability difficulty difference

12

4.

Fish

36

5.

Peter’s Hand – MK-VII

14

5.

Untitled

37

6.

Butterflies, Bubbles, Flowers + Fish

15

6.

Untitled

38

7.

Symbolic Impressions – MK-81

18

7.

C.A.A.R

39

8.

Zig-E-Zag

19

8.

Fish-E – MK-IV

40

9.

Bubbles – MK-III

22

9.

Peter’s Hand – MK-II

41

10. Straights, Rounds, Bubbles + Butterflies

23

10. Girl + Horse in Rain

42

11. Cacti-TX-USA

26

11. Leaves, Feathers + Fish

43

12. Peter’s Hand – MK-VIII

27

12. Untitled

44

13. Untitled

29

13. Peter’s Hand – MK-III

45

14. Peter’s Hand – MK-XI-C

30

14. Peter’s Hand – MK-V

46

15. Spy-Key

50

15. Symbolic Impressions – MK-79

47

16. Untitled

54

16. Mosaic Circles – MK-II (Blue 4 U)

48

17. Untitled

55

18. Untitled

58

19. Untitled

59

20. Untitled

62

21. Peter’s hand – MK-X-B

63

22. Mazewandering

66

23. C-H-TOO-OH!

67

24. Peter’s Hand – MK-XII

69

25. Wonderfied

70

26. Waall

71

27. Untitled

74

28. Untitled

75

29. Chrimbo Card Design – 2001

78

1. MINDFLOWERS 258 x 182mm felt pen 30 March 1995, York

“This picture was Flowers of the mind. Mind play. A sense of flowers. Originally a gift for Susan.”

7

2. FLOWERS + FISH 190 x 267mm felt pen 12.24am, 2 July 2001, York

“I like fish, flowers, patterns. This picture combines all three elements. It is also related to the picture ‘Fish’, done April 23rd 1998, although that picture is in colour. (p.36) I quite like to explore old ideas, designs, and interpret them in new ways, developing these concepts futher, or in different ways, directions. It is a thing I often do, hence there are many variations along a similar theme. And then again, sometimes I just ‘shoot off at a tangent’ and do something entirely new and this in turn may become a new pattern for me to play with.”

8

Preface Working with artist Peter Myers has been both a privilege and a scientific break-through for us. It is a privilege because Peter has given generously of his time and work, and because he is a kind, well-intentioned, modest and tremendously talented man. To meet Peter Myers is to meet a quietly spoken, hard-working, extremely sincere individual, who has struggled with Asperger Syndrome all his life. But to meet him is to meet a man who does what he has to do – indeed, what all people with AS have to do – which is to follow through the drive that comes from deep within them, to organize and classify information, and to find order in the world, by analyzing, building and designing all kinds of systems. To meet Peter Myers is to meet an independent thinker (for people with AS think for themselves) who, with what some people might consider an obsessive degree of enthusiasm, produces his own unique representations of the world around him. We asked Peter if he wanted to publish his art in this book, not just because of its intrinsic value as art, but also because of its interest to us as scientists. We have consulted with Peter over every aspect of this book so that he has felt happy with both the form and the content of it. In this sense, it is his book, and we feel privileged to have been able to work in collaboration with him to produce it. Simon Baron-Cohen and Sally Wheelwright

3. UNTITLED11 270 x 190mm felt pen 10.56pm, 20 march 2002, York inked in 28 march 2002.

1

10

As picture 28, p.75 (inked in version)

Acknowledgements Simon Baron-Cohen and Sally Wheelwright were supported by the MRC, the James S. McDonnell Foundation, the Shirley Foundation, The Isaac Newton Trust, The National Alliance for Autism Research, Cure Autism Now, and the Three Guineas Trust during the period of their work with Peter Myers.

4. DISSABILITY DIFFICULTY DIFFERENCE 200 x 280mm felt pen 9.49pm, 2 November 2002, York. Altered 4.40pm, 21 December 2002. York

“Spelling deliberate.”

12

About Peter “Where do you live?” “What information are you after?” he asked. “Do you want to know which country I live in, or which county I live in, or which city I live in, or which neighbourhood, or which street, or which house? Or maybe you are asking which room in the house?”

5. PETER’S HAND – MK-VII 271 x 391mm felt pen 3.19pm, 28 August 2000, York

Part of both the Peter’s Hand and One Line Maze series.

14

“This picture encompasses growth, potential of individuals. It reflects differing states of being, different levels of development. It is a positive picture, culminating in flying high, being free, being the best that one can be, maximizing one’s potential, if one is allowed to, allowed to be, to be oneself.

6. BUTTERFLIES, BUBBLES, FLOWERS + FISH 256 x 190mm felt pen 12 February 1996, York

A gift for Susan.

It includes the basic elements of earth (the plants), water (with fish), air, and fire (the warmth and light of the sun. The giver of life). I like butterflies, bubbles, flowers and fish. This picture combines all of these elements.”

15

Everyone described Peter Myers as an easy child. He never caused any trouble, he obeyed the rules, he performed reasonably well academically at school, and he was happiest when occupying himself alone at home. What more could a parent or a teacher hope for in a child? But Peter’s mother recognized that she needed to push Peter to socialize: it didn’t come naturally to him. Instead, she practically had to force him out of the house to play with his

brothers’ friends. And it was always his brothers’ friends, as Peter didn’t have any friends of his own. To us, as psychologists, hearing that an individual has no friends of his or her own rings a bell, since this may be a clear sign that an individual has social difficulties. From Peter’s perspective though, he saw himself as quiet, and as someone who just didn’t like the rough and tumble, mock or real aggression of the other boys. He disliked the sound of children screaming and he avoided 16

close physical contact with other children. This was most apparent in the playground, where the sudden movements of other children could seem unpredictable, unexpected, and very uncomfortable. But more than anything, the other children made him feel different. And through their eyes, they commented that he looked different. They thought he had a rather strange gait, that his facial expressions and gestures were odd and stiff, and they picked up on his unusual little habits. But though he felt an outsider, that he didn’t easily belong or fit in, he was intelligent and didn’t make a fuss, so neither his family nor his school thought there was anything more to it than that. Sadly, it took many years for Peter to find out the real reason why he does not easily understand other people, and why they do not easily understand him. Certainly, in his childhood, nobody mentioned Asperger Syndrome, so the help and the reassurance that should flow from knowing just wasn’t available. But more of that later. Let’s go back to Peter’s earliest years. Peter was born in a ‘gilly’ [Arabic slang for sandstorm] amid the dramatic scenery of the Sahara Desert, in a place called El Adem on the Mediterranean coast of Libya, on 1 June 1959. His family were in Libya because Peter’s father was in the RAF, and was stationed at Tobruk on the Mediterranean coast. Luckily there were no complications during his birth, as the nearest military hospital was in Cyprus! And anyway,

the “gilly” that was raging would have prevented a helicopter evacuation. Peter was the third and final child born to the Myers family. His two elder brothers were born in March 1956 and December 1957, respectively. His family moved around a lot while he was young, as was common for service families, living in places as far afield as Skegness and Singapore. Peter attended mainstream or service schools wherever the family was based. On the face of it, then, Peter was developing normally, reaching all the usual milestones on time, including language development. However, if people had bothered to ask Peter, they would have picked up that he was different to the other children. He recalls how – even in primary school – the classroom was stressful for him. He could manage it, but only if the other children were fairly quiet. He found play-time, and sports lessons, particularly difficult and upsetting. As a reaction, he turned away from other people and showed little interest in making friends. He would sometimes play games with other children, such as marbles, but this was because he liked collecting the marbles rather than enjoying joining in with the other children. For a normally developing child, one might expect that the fun of feeling connected to another person would be as attractive as acquiring the collection of marbles. For Peter, people and things were not of equal interest. He found other children something of a nuisance: they messed up his careful arrange-

ments of toy soldiers, or used the piece of Lego that he wanted. No wonder, then, that he preferred to stay in the house drawing, rather than going out to play. As a result, Peter did not have any close friends as a young boy and adolescent. He occasionally tagged along with other people but he thinks that they tended to be children who, for different reasons, found it difficult to fit in too. Peter was passive in social situations, lacking initiative. He says that he had to be shown what to do, how to behave and even how to be a child. It just didn’t come naturally to him. In many respects, Peter says he preferred the company of adults to that of other children. To him, adults were less frightening – they provided a more predictable, and consequently, safer environment. Peter says he didn’t realize he was different until it was pointed out to him, repeatedly, by his brothers, other children, and by his parents. For example, in hot weather, even if he was sweating, he didn’t like to take off his tie, sweater, or jacket, or even roll up his sleeves. Sports lessons were a nightmare for him as he not only had to remove his outer clothing, but also had to come into physical contact with other children. He also disliked the competition and aggression involved in sport and could not see the point of such activities. For him, sports lessons were frightening experiences he was forced to endure. He suspects that he may have unwittingly offended other people by avoiding close contact with them. He now knows they probably thought he was rude, 17

7. SYMBOLIC IMPRESSIONS MK-81 190 x 267mm felt pen 5.32pm, 24 June 2001, York

“I have done eighty versions of ‘Symbolic Impressions’ in colour and I wished to produce a black and white version.” 8. ZIG-E-ZAG 190 x 260mm felt pen 2.07pm, 30 December 2000, York

Part of the One Line Maze series, using geometry and optical effect.

18

19

though at the time this was not his intention and he didn’t appreciate that he might have come across to others like that. If he had the choice at break time between going out to play in the playground, or staying in the classroom, Peter much preferred staying in, and particularly looking after the stick insects in the biology room. When the rules changed so that everyone had to go out, break time became, in Peter’s words, “a living hell on earth”. Tragically, Peter was bullied at senior school between the ages of 11 and 162 . A diagnosis would hopefully have alerted the teachers to his special needs and helped them to realize he could be at risk for being bullied, so that they could have kept an eye out in case he was being teased or victimized, but sadly Asperger Syndrome went un-noticed in those days. Hans Asperger’s own account of the clinical condition that disrupts the ability to socialize, whilst facilitating the person’s attention to detail, had not yet been translated into English from the original German publication of 2

2 3 4 5 6

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1944. Like many others, Peter’s problems went un-noticed because there was no name for the condition. Despite his social difficulties, he passed some of his exams, getting particularly good grades in art3 . He went on to study geometric and mechanical drawing at sixth-form college4 . At the end of July 1976, he started an apprenticeship as an engineering technician, but at the end of the first year, having failed the maths and physics side of the course, the apprenticeship continued as a tool makers apprenticeship. Peter was unsuited to this, particularly since it did not allow Peter to draw, which is where his talent lay. As a result he became depressed, and in the third year of this apprenticeship he was referred, for the first time in his life, to a psychiatric service5 . The psychiatrist who saw him then thought Peter was “dropping out of society”, but was unsure whether this was due to “some early schizophrenic withdrawal” or because Peter hadn’t managed to “embrace the world of fine arts”6 . The psychiatrist didn’t 3

4

5

6

I think the school I attended (aged 11–16), was badly run, allowing disruptive pupils to ‘run riot’, out of control. There was a lack of safeguards and a breakdown in overall discipline. This allowed negative individuals and behaviour, to flourish and thrive, creating an overall negative environment. I cannot function well in such an environment. I studied no exams at ordinary level at school, and took no ‘O’ level exams. I did receive a C.S.E.-1 in Art, which is equivalent to an ‘O’ level pass. Considering my overall IQ, this is a ‘mismatch’ with my potential (i.e. something is wrong here). At sixth form college my main course of study was ‘A’ level art. This was a two-year course which I did not complete because I left after the first year. I also studied English and Maths at ‘O’ level, but failed these at exam. I also studied Geometric and Mechanical Drawing at ‘O’ level, which I did pass at exam. I broke open a mercury thermometer and swallowed the contents and asked my GP later, ‘Why am I not dead?’ I was picked up by the police and taken to the hospital to have my stomach pumped out (something I declined by signing a release form). I was again picked up by the police, and given the offer of going home, or to their cells. They told my father that he should have me committed to a lunatic asylum. It was my desire to do art. The psychiatrist merely mentioned this in his notes. The psychologist I consulted at the time did not consider the possibility of my studying art very high, due to my difficulties at that time. However I did go to college to study art, for a total of four years, four very successful years for me.

recognize Asperger Syndrome in Peter either. Instead, he referred Peter to a clinical psychologist in the hope that a clearer diagnosis would be forthcoming. Peter recalled that the psychologist described him as “a rather sullen and languid young man of few words, the only exception to this being when he was showing me a portfolio of his artistic creations, a number of which I unwittingly viewed upside down, much to his obvious annoyance” .7 The psychologist diagnosed Peter as depressed, obsessive and anxious, and to his credit, recorded that he remained unsure as to the correct diagnosis. Peter was also self-medicating with alcohol and cannabis at this time, and was at one point arrested for being drunk. He knew he was unhappy. All he really wanted to do was draw. It is heart-breaking to think how even when he finally was seen by the clinical services, for historical reasons the appropriate diagnosis – of Asperger Syndrome – was denied to him, since it was not yet a familiar medical category. His desire to draw, however, was partly realized when he enrolled at Darlington 7

7 8 9

College of Technology, for the diploma in applied design course. Life certainly improved for him and he looks back on it as a successful time8 . He completed the course with merit (the highest grade possible), managed to gain History and English ‘O’ levels (the high school leaving exams) by studying at night school, and even passed an Art ‘A’ level (the University entrance requirement), despite not having studied the syllabus. At college he served as the publicity officer on the student union council, and he was a delegate at a National Union of Students conference. Peter then moved on to Sunderland Polytechnic, enrolling on their higher diploma in applied design (precision modelling) course. Precision modelling involves creating very detailed models of buildings and requires both high levels of technical ability, planning ability, and a great deal of patience. Peter obviously had these skills in abundance as once more he passed the course with merit, the highest grade possible .9 It was during this course that he lived away from home for the first time. The house he lived in was occupied by the owner’s family 8

9

This is not something dependent on my own recollection, but from my psychologist’s own notes on me, which I obtained copies of in 1992 (although initially they were somewhat reluctant to allow me to have them. And I have copies of these letters pertaining to this also!). All in all this was my most successful four years of study, something my psychologist did not consider me capable of. Maybe I defy perceived logic (joke). I did not make models as a child (apart from plasticine skindivers, Lego robots, and balsa wood boats), although all the other students on the course had. My understanding of art prior to college was quite basic, the simple drawing and painting I had done at secondary-school level (although at primary school, art was much more interesting, potato printing, lino printing, papier-mâché, and making things in paper, card, polystyrene). On the diploma course I did things I had previously not experienced (e.g. ceramics, photography, fabric and paper printing techniques, history of design, visual communications, graphics, and 3D work in wood, metal and plastics). My interest shifted from the two-dimensional (drawing) to the three-dimensional. And model making was the closest I could find to what I wanted to do. And I was lucky enough to find and gain a place on the only model making course in the UK at that time.

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9. BUBBLES – MK-III 278 x 390mm felt pen 4.09pm, 2 September 2000, York

“I like patterns. I first used a bubble design, pattern, as part of a picture I drew in 1979. (p.33) This picture is an abstraction. It isolates and concentrates on one aspect of that earlier picture, namely the bubble design, pattern.”

“Gift for Jim. This picture is similar to ‘Butterflies, bubbles, flowers and fish’ (on page 13). It shares a similar theme, but in a different format. It features straight and curved lines. And also bubbles and butterflies.”

10. STRAIGHTS, ROUNDS, BUBBLES + BUTTERFLIES 203 x 249mm felt pen 27 February 1996, York

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and other students. At first this arrangement worked well. Meals were provided, so that all he had to worry about was his course. Soon, though, problems developed with some of the other students. In Peter’s words, they were “rude, badly behaved and insulting.” Their noisy behaviour affected his sleep, some money that he lent one of them was not returned, and there was general unpleasantness. Peter grew to fear them .10 He feels that this pattern of events has recurred in other phases of his life: Initial encounters with other people go reasonably well, but eventually there is a falling out and relationships end abruptly. As a young man Peter did go out with girls. Most were teenage romances of a few weeks, but there were two more serious relationships, each lasting for about two years. He was even engaged to be married when he was 18. He feels the relationship was not really serious though, and that he just “fell into” the engagement. This relationship ended with a major argument, and the engagement ring was literally thrown back at Peter. The other serious relationship in Peter’s life began whilst he was at technical college. Peter was taken under the wing of a student called Chris, who was Chinese-Malayan, and through 10

10

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Chris his social life filled out. Through Chris, he met Marie-Anne, who was Chris’s girlfriend’s best friend. They all enjoyed socializing together. Peter would spend the evening drinking whilst the others danced. Peter was afraid of dancing – it made him anxious. For whatever reason, Peter’s relationship with Marie-Anne came to an end when he moved to study at Sunderland Polytechnic, and his friendship with Chris also came to an end when Chris returned to Malaysia .11 That was back in 1981, and he hasn’t had a relationship since then. He sums up how he feels as follows: “I just don’t seem to be very good at this sort of thing. I feel there is someone for everyone in this life. It’s just that I haven’t met my ‘heavenly twin’ yet.” After completing the course at Sunderland Polytechnic, Peter worked briefly at two firms of model makers in the North East of England, before heading off to work in Saudi Arabia for two years. As Peter had moved around a lot as a child, he enjoyed living in different countries. When he returned to the UK, he had saved up enough money to take a few months out of work, during which time he learned to drive. He then returned to model making, initially in Darlington and then in York, where he bought 11

These were negative individuals, ‘spoiled brats’. They were badly behaved, rude and arrogant. They would come back drunk and abusive. Things ‘came to a head’ when the police brought them back one morning, after a drunken night out. Shortly afterwards my landlady asked them to leave, which they did. Good riddance. The other students I shared the house with were much nicer, polite and well behaved. They included two gentlemen from Pakistan whom I found most interesting (e.g. different diet, Ramadan etc.). It was a foreign environment to them too, fellow travellers. I think Marie-Anne was more emotionally mature and moved on. I didn’t. People change and outgrow me. I am left behind (joke).

the house he lives in to this day. He continued to work as a model maker, in various companies, for many years. More recently, as a result of changes in the model making industry, he has been working in a factory in York. Over the years, Peter continued to suffer periods of depression, but was still no closer to finding out the root of his problems. Then in 1988 he watched a television program on BBC2 called The Human Brain that included a segment about autism. He recognized some similarities between himself and the people in the program, but they were also quite severely disabled, whereas Peter lived an independent life. A few years later, in 1992, Peter read Donna William’s book, Nobody Nowhere that introduced him to the idea that there is a spectrum of autistic conditions. He immediately identified with people on this spectrum .12 He began seeking further information. “I was on a quest, with no idea where I was going. It was just something I had to do.” Looking back on it, he felt it was a quest for self-knowledge that had suddenly become accessible, years later than it should have, to him. It finally felt as if there might be a name for what he had been going through.

His enquiries eventually led him to Professor Pat Howlin at St. George’s Hospital in London .13 She met Peter, and following a full assessment, diagnosed him as having Asperger Syndrome. She advised him to contact the disability employment advisor (DEA) at the job centre the next time he found himself out of work. This he did, and it was through this contact that he gained access to the help he so desperately needed, even though he initially had to explain to the DEA what Asperger Syndrome (AS) was. 13

12

12 13

I discovered from Donna’s book that one could exist on the autistic spectrum, but also function within society (e.g. school, work), whilst simultaneously not being a part of it. But most of all, ‘joy of joys’, I discovered that there existed others like myself. I was no longer ‘one of a kind’, unique, I was ‘one of a kind’, many. I wrote to Donna Williams, who suggested I contact Dr Patricia Howlin. I would not have found her on my own. My knowledge of autism in 1992 was quite basic. Donna’s knowledge was far superior, as she had been aware of the autistic world for longer. All I knew was myself (and this is always an incomplete science – joke), and the strong similarities of autism to me – like and like.

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11. CACTI-TX-USA 252 x 191mm felt pen 1 October 1998, York

“Geometric pattern design, influenced by a trip to visit my friend Scott in Texas, USA, and my liking of cacti.” 12. PETER’S HAND – MK-VIII 267 x 190mm felt pen and ink 2.36pm, 7 January 2001, York

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When Peter was finally diagnosed with AS in 1996, there was little support available in York for people with AS. Peter did however make contact with an American support organisation called MAAP (a loose acronym for More Advanced individuals with Autism, Asperger Syndrome and Pervasive Developmental Disorder), and he began corresponding with its founder, Susan Moreno. Peter included a doodle in one of his letters. Susan – thankfully – noticed this little doodle and loved it. She encouraged him to do a picture for her which she then printed, with his permission, in the MAAP newsletter. (see p.70) Since then Peter’s work has been in increasing demand. His pictures have appeared in exhibitions internationally, and have been made into post-cards. His spare time is predominantly taken up with creating new pieces of art and with correspondence, usually in relation to his pictures. He also likes watching science fiction and will happily watch his favorite films over and over again. He loves photography, gardening, making things, music, and history. And of course, he is fascinated by anything to do with the autism spectrum. Peter doesn’t have many close friends, but he has recently joined the York social skills group, where he likes to be with other people who are more like him. For Peter, finally learning that he had AS did not solve all his problems. He is still prone to depression, though his art has often helped him through the low periods. But he feels that having a 28

diagnosis of Asperger Syndrome has given him a better understanding of why and how he is different. It has meant that he can follow his interests without having to conform socially, when socializing doesn’t come naturally to him. And it has brought him into contact with a whole world of other people who accept him, and value him.

13. UNTITLED 190 x 270mm felt tip 12.12am, 7 September 2001, York

“It is representational of what one might feel, sense, experience when ‘in the zone’, whilst engaged in some simple solitary pursuit (e.g. meditation, gardening, drawing, some simple repetitive task), sort of inner contemplation, a universal oneness, inner peace…I am happy there. I like to draw. It is an exploration of pattern design, dots and lines. It has an optical quality. Inner patterns, universal patterns. Inner experience expressed outwardly. It reminds me of aspects of Buddhism (e.g. a Zen garden), or ancient European art, tribal art, Celtic art, or Australian Aboriginal art.”

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14. PETER’S HAND – MK-XI-C 192 x 272mm print and ink line drawing completed 4.46pm, 17 October 2001, Houston, Texas, USA, inked in print, 8.17pm, 6 November 2001, York

This picture in the series uses an an organic, fluid pattern design and optical effect.

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Colour Plates “My interest in art helped bring myself out of myself, and I consider it integral to my existence. It is a very personal, direct connection, self with self, and here I feel whole, at peace with my own being, happy.”

1. UNTITLED 408 x 292mm ink and felt tip pen 1979, Darlington

“It is a machine, an automaton, with no control over its own existence. What ‘this world’ seemed to expect, demand of me, was quite literally killing me. My very soul, being, essence of self seemed stifled and life itself was ebbing out of me. I ‘went through the motions’ of going in to work each day, although I was merely ‘functioning on automatic’. I was drinking heavily, dabbling in drugs (dope, pills), and generally running myself into the ground. …if I could not be myself, I did not wish to be. One minor drawback at that time, was that I despised my own existence (joke), so first I had to learn to like and accept myself, which is one of the hardest things I have ever had to learn to do. It was a period of rebellion and change for me. I hate change (joke) so this was particularly hard for me to adjust to. My interest in art helped bring myself out of myself, and I consider it integral to my existence. It is a very personal, direct connection, self with self, and…I feel whole, at peace with my own being, happy J. I had longer hair then (joke).”

Peter produced this picture when he was experiencing a period of clinical depression. Peter says that he had used drawing at school to try to ward off depression and this picture was completed as a kind of self-therapy, self-initiated. And it worked – Peter was able to go on to four successful years at college. Peter describes this as a very difficult time, compounded by the fact that he was on prescribed medicine, drinking heavily and taking illegal drugs. Apparently an acquaintance went so far as to suggest he had a death wish, but Peter says that this is not quite right, “It is just that if I could not be myself, I simply did not wish to be. To be what the world expected, demanded of me, was not me, was only pain and inner turmoil.”

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2. BOWLING GREEN – SOUTH PARK, DARLINGTON 388 x 266mm ink 1979/81, Darlington

This picture was created as part of a college project. Students spent the afternoon in the park making sketches before producing a final piece. “I still possess sketches I made that afternoon, in pencil and pen B/W, some ducks, a lawnmower and sketches around the bowling green. I was interested in the curves in things, and combined various elements to make a stylized picture.”

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3. HIDDEN JUNGLE JAMBOREEE 255 x 210mm felt tip pen 4 March 1998, York

“Red and orange is warmth, green is life, growth, black is defined shape, shadow. I sense, feel, warmth, growth, shape and form. It is hidden like a wood or jungle, as it is a sensed thing, being an inner thing, not an outer thing. And it is play. Hence ‘Hidden Jungle Jamboree’.”

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4. FISH

5. UNTITLED

253 x 203mm felt tip pen 23 April 1998, York

204 x 255mm felt tip pen 20 May 1998, York

This picture developed from sea life doodles, which Peter did whilst attending a conference in London for people with autism and Asperger “While at the conference I started Syndrome. ‘doodling’, first seaweed, then coral, more seaweed, fish and a seahorse. From this doodle I developed this picture.”

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“An experiment in representing plant foliage with flowers. This plant meanders from the plant pot, around and around, culminating in the flowers in the centre. It is a simple playful picture, and I like my solution to filling in the background detail: dots.”

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6. UNTITLED 250 x 190mm felt tip pen 19 June 1998, York

“This particular picture has a central core detail of red and black circles, squares, oblongs, lines, triangles, curves and dots. This represents self. The ‘Waall’ designs, patterns, represent all the layers that can conceal this, either intentionally, or unintentionally. In this picture, the wall picture is not only represented as multi-layered, but also in converse directions, and I think the inclusion of offset angles, and particularly the use of the red and black colours, helps to emphasise this (e.g. the use of red, black and white colours in combination are not only relatively simple, but also quite powerful colour combinations psychologically). It is a friendly picture, opening up of self to others, which may so easily be once again hidden beneath layers of obscurity.”

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7. C.A.A.R 250 x 190mm photocopied photograph, metallic ink pens Photograph taken in Darlington (1979/81), print produced 14 February 1999, York

This is a picture of Peter’s niece, sister-in-law and brother who are called Claire, Ann and Richard, hence C.A.A.R.

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8. FISH-E – MK-IV 271 x 196mm photocopied line drawing, metallic ink pens line drawing produced 28 February 1999, York, hand coloured print produced 9 March 1999, York

“I like fish. It is a recurring theme in my artwork. I kept the original drawing as it is, so as to produce print copies so that I can try different colour variations and different size prints. I have done seventeen versions of this picture at A4 size, and four at A3 size. It is a very popular picture, people like it, and I have given several away. I have exhibited versions this picture in the UK, USA and one has been on exhibit in Scotland, France, Spain and Italy. The NAS used a version as one of ten postcards they produced and sold in their catalogue.”

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“This picture is very similar to ‘Peter’s Hand – MK-I’. That picture I gave to Ross and his family. Ross is on the autistic spectrum and, although his parents are English, they all live in Texas, USA. My friend Scott who lives in Texas, USA, knew and met Ross (Scott is also on the autistic spectrum). Scott communicated a little of Ross’s circumstances, and so I thought as a nice gesture I would send both him and his family one of my pictures (Scott’s suggestion). Hence the original ‘Peter’s Hand’ picture. The origins of the picture go back to my drawing with Tom and Helina, the children of my next door neighbours, Wayne and Alison. Helina is my goddaughter. Before this family moved to New Zealand, I was very friendly with and sort of part of their extended family (e.g. I am a lousy cook, quite basic, and so I was often invited over for Sunday dinner, BBQs, going to the pub for last orders with Wayne, or babysitting Tom and Helina, if Wayne and Alison wanted a ‘night on the town’).

9. PETER’S HAND – MK-II 200 x 260mm felt pen 21 March 1999, York

Anyway, I used to do drawing with Tom and Helina and one type of drawing I used to do, quite simple really, was to draw around someone’s hand or foot, and make a pattern from this. This is directly related to the simple drawing I did for Ross and his family (‘Peter’s Hand – MK-I’) and other ‘Peter’s Hand’ pictures originate from this. Also the ‘symbolic impressions’ series of pictures is related to this. I had given away ‘Peter’s Hand – MK-I’, and I missed it. So I created another very similar to the original to replace it.”

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10. GIRL + HORSE IN RAIN 365 x 278mm photocopied photograph, metallic ink pens, felt tip pen 20 June 1999, York

Peter took this photograph at an agricultural show outside Thirsk which he visited with a fellow student from college and his parents.

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“It was a dull, grey, damp, wet day, so lots of ‘squelchy’ mud! I like to wander about with my camera (which helps to provide a purpose, or motivation, or at the least, a portable thing I can hide behind) and capture the facsimile of naturally occurring phenomenon. Being a wet day, the girl with the horse was wearing a raincoat, and I thought it nice that the horse had one too! ‘Bleaching’ the photographic image using a photocopier (producing an effect very similar to that which may be achieved using a ‘process camera’, of which I had seen an example of at college; Achieving a similar effect by use of a photocopier is a method I devised myself) reduces the grey tonal values, to either black or white, producing a simplified, high contrast image. I added a sun design, as I feel a sun is always positive and warm. It was a grey, overcast day, so this sun could not be observed directly, but it is always there. So the sun design in the picture is merely symbolic. The blue represents the blue sky, also not directly observable that day (joke). And green is the green of the countryside and also of growth.”

11. LEAVES, FEATHERS + FISH 190 x 260mm metallic ink pen 28 June 1999, York

Peter created this picture simply because he was interested in the skeletal patterns in leaves, feathers and fish. “An exploration of things sensed. Skeletal patterns – the ‘bare bones’, of underlying structure.”

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“Marianne was on the hairdressing course. As part of her course final year show ‘Hair styles through the ages’ students on that course modelled various hairstyles, with the appropriate period costume worn. Marianne chose Edwardian. One of my interests of that time was photography (still is), and I was interested in ‘old brown photos’, photos produced using sepia tone (e.g. a photographic image is bleached, removing the black image, and the image is replaced by adding a sepia tone – a reddish brown pigment, although it is equally possible to substitute some other colour, such as blue, green, etc.). Anyway, provided with this opportunity, I decided to create my own photographic project (I was inclined to do this sort of thing on occasion). As a college project I photographed Marianne in various stages of transition, culminating in a photo of her in period costume and hairstyle and from this photographic image, I produced a sepia tone print. This picture is a further development of this photographic image. It is ‘bleached’ using a photocopier, to reduce the grey tonal values to a simplified black and white image. I then added an oval shape, reminiscent of ‘old brown photos’ and have tinted the area inside of the oval shape, with a pattern design, using two types of metallic copper ink pen (which is hardly observable unless one observes closely) and the exterior of the oval shape was finished, completed using a ‘squiggle’ pattern design, using metallic inks.”

12. UNTITLED 200 x 287mm photocopied photograph, metallic ink pens photograph taken 1981, Darlington, picture produced 28 August 1999, York

This is a picture of Peter’s girlfriend when he was at college.

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13. PETER’S HAND – MK-III 190 x 260mm felt tip pen 1.25pm, 5 January 2000, York

“With this series of pictures I vary hands, finger position, and of course design.”

The hand is outlined in a band of colours, and this band of colours is duplicated, layer by layer, an image behind an image (creating the illusion of depth) at irregular angles.

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14. PETER’S HAND – MK-V 190 x 260mm felt tip pen 8.50am, 7 January 2000, York

15. SYMBOLIC IMPRESSIONS – MK-79 381 x 277mm felt tip pen 11.32pm, 6 June 2000, York

One of ten pictures donated to the NAS and sold at auction at their ‘London ball’, held at the Dorchester hotel.

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16. MOSAIC CIRCLES – MK-II (BLUE 4 U) 277 x 391mm felt tip pen, metallic ink 3.48pm, 8 September 2000, York

Peter donated ‘Mosaic Circles – MK-I’ to the National Autistic Society but missed it so he decided to produce a replacement for it. The picture is not an exact replica though.

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“On this occation, I used blue colours only. This picture is an exercise in forming patterns using dots only.”

An Artist Who Can Teach Scientists

Precision Exactness Detail Systemizing

15. SPY-KEY 260 x 190mm felt pen 13 July 1999, York

“It is similar to ‘Zig-e-zag’ (p.19), giving a sharp edge pattern design. It is a sort of spinning spark picture.”

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We met Peter through our research into Asperger Syndrome, and were immediately struck by his astonishing art. Peter is of course unique in precisely what he does, and on the face of it, is atypical of AS in being the kind of artist he is. But we instantly saw that in some special respects, Peter’s art could teach us a great deal not just about his own mind, but about the minds of people with AS more generally. People with AS do what they have to do. It is as if some inner drive impels them to pursue their focused interests. This drive comes from deep within them. No one had to push Peter to produce his art. 14 And no one has to push one man we know called Jeffrey (living in London) to write out lists of musical records from each decade, painstakingly cross-checking information against the name of each record, for their release-date, the names of each artist in the band, the duration of each track on the record, the name of the recording company, and other apparently trivial but clearly very detailed information. It seemed to us that Jeffrey may produce these lists, and Peter may produce his drawings, for no other reason than to complete a system. The type of system may vary hugely from one person with AS to another, but in other respects, one can see the similarities. Take

Robert, a man with AS we know who lives in Oxford, who feels that he has to compile a database of every character in Greek mythology, running into thousands of detailed entries. We asked him why he does it, but all he could say was that he is interested in the complete list. He wanted to complete the system. Or take Steven, a man with AS we know who lives in Copenhagen, who has to listen to certain songs and play them over and over again, for hundreds if not thousands of hours, until he can sing the songs in exactly the way the original version was played. Exactness.

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David, a man with AS we know who lives in Toronto, took up juggling, and analyzes the mathematics and physics of the trajectory of each ball, identifying with a sharp eye where each ball has to go, the path it has to take, to fit into the exact timing to be where it is meant to be. With such precision, it becomes possible for him to juggle with eight balls in the air. His juggling can become as accurate as the working of a car engine – he learns how the eight components work with complete precision at the same time. People with AS seem fascinated with systems like a car engine that work because each component is so well defined in terms of its place, its function, and its timing,

I am not sure why I do what I do, simply that I wish to do it. It is a gift I have been given, as I feel everyone will have their own gift. The trick is to discover what this is. Art is what I am programmed to do. So to maximize my own potential and utilize this gift/potential (as all potentials have to be developed) I have an inner need to draw (or make things). Art is something I may share with others, although I originally did it for self (i.e. not with an intent to share with others).

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that it blends seamlessly in with the others. And in each case, the person with AS cannot help but follow his or her (some would say “compulsive”) interest to go as deeply into the system which has most fascination to him as a lifetime allows. Precision. Exactness.

and systemizing come through very strongly in Peter’s art, these four qualities are also evident in the published work of other artists on the autistic spectrum, such as Steven Wiltshire or Nadia or Lisa Peroni. More important, we feel that our “systemizing” theory of autism has the power to explain how someone like Peter makes pictures like

Detail. Systemizing. Working with Peter Myers has helped us to identify these four qualities as the key psychological elements which are central in forming an understanding of the mind of someone with AS. It is not that knowing Peter himself has allowed us as scientists to isolate these four key qualities, but more that his work seems to typify and crystallize the four psychological qualities that come though as being common to different individuals with AS. One problem with drawing scientific conclusions from working with an artist like Peter is that in focusing on a man who is evidently a “high-achiever” ,15 a man who is highly creative could distort the picture of more typical AS. Again, we discussed this with Peter. On reflection we all felt we might be presenting an unrealistic picture of what life is like for most people with AS. Although precision, exactness, detail, 15

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I don’t feel like a high achiever. I am an imperfect perfectionist, which is really annoying (joke). The desire to achieve perfection, which is never achieved, drives one on to greater efforts. Satisfaction, is knowing when to stop (joke).

these, why he does it, and the obsessive drive that other people with autism or AS also have to fulfil their special interest. In short, it can account for people with AS’ strong drive to construct or analyze very different kinds of systems. More on that shortly. But first, let us remind you what is known about AS – and its close relative, autism.

AUTISM SPECTRUM CONDITIONS Autism is diagnosed when a child or adult differs from the “normal” population in a “triad” (set of three) of areas of behaviour: • social development • communication • and repetitive behaviour/obsessive interests.

In the 1960s and 1970s, many of the children with autism who were studied also had learning difficulties (i.e. below average intelligence defined precisely as having an IQ of less than 70) and delay in the acquisition of language. An average IQ of 60 was not uncommon among individuals on the autistic spectrum studied during that period. In the 1980s, some psychologists began to focus more on what was then known as “high functioning autism”. In reality such children might be better described as medium functioning because they actually had IQs within the average range (this meant their IQ fell within two standard deviations from the population

mean of 100). If your IQ falls below two standard deviations from the mean of 100, you are said to have a “learning disability”. Since one standard deviation is 15 points, this means that anyone with an IQ above 70 would still have been included in this band. An IQ of 71 is therefore by this statistical definition average, but should not really be called “high-functioning”, as someone with an IQ of 71 may not find it easy to achieve high school leaving examinations or certificates. Hence our suggestion that individuals with an IQ between 71–84 be thought of as medium functioning. (We apologize for the value-laden implications of the terms low, medium, and high, but these are not our terms. They are inherent in the use of the IQ tests, which as most people know have been widely used for at least 50 years.) By the 1990s research reports had shifted again, now including the truly high-functioning strata of the autistic spectrum: those whose IQs were within one standard deviation of the mean (i.e above 85, but below 115). Indeed, reports started to be published of individuals with autism spectrum conditions who had what is known as a “superior” IQ (i.e. those whose IQ was above 116). And then people started talking about Asperger Syndrome. AS was first described by Hans Asperger in Austria in 1944. The descriptions of the children he documented overlapped considerably with the accounts of childhood autism that had been written by Leo Kanner in 1943. Little 53

16. UNTITLED 190 x 270mm felt pen 7.05pm, 18 October 2001, Houston, Texas, USA

“This picture contains aspects of my holiday, a trip to Mexico (A cruise) and is based upon things I saw and experienced.”

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17. UNTITLED 190 x 270mm felt pen 2.25pm, 17 August 2001, York

This picture was created for Asperger United, a magazine produced by and for people with Asperger Syndrome. “A development of the well known smiley face symbol/design. I have simply explored this theme using variations in size, shape, and facial expression. I drew the grid in the background last.”

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was published specifically on AS in English until relatively recently, first by Lorna Wing in 1981, and more extensively by Uta Frith in 1991. Current diagnostic practice recognizes people with AS as meeting the same criteria as high-functioning autism that we listed above, but with no history of delay in language development, and with no delay in skills aquisition. This means that as a toddler, the individual was speaking on time (i.e. using single words by age two, and/or phrase speech by three) and that his or her mental age was in line with his or her chronological age (i.e. his or her IQ was in the normal range). This background into the history of the development of ideas about autism and intelligence is important, because it reveals that over the last 40 years there has been a major shift in diagnostic practice and consequently in the scientific studies that are made possible. When trying to understand the “autistic mind”, as psychologists, we now have to ask: what are the shared, defining characteristics that are seen not only in the low- or

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medium-functioning individuals, but are also found in this truly high-functioning group? What kind of theory can apply not only to a man like Peter Myers, but also to Sanjay, a young boy living in Chennai, South India, who has autism, who has no language at all, and who has become brilliant at playing tabla music? When we met Sanjay, at four years old, he could not yet communicate verbally. His diagnosis of autism reflects his language delay, but in other ways he shares signs of individuals with AS, in that he has social difficulties and strong, narrow interests. Sanjay could immediately distinguish between different tabla drum rhythms that were played to him. Imagine the typical 4 beats in a bar of western music. Now imagine that each of the 4 beats was divided into 8 rapid mini-beats, so that one of our bars has 32 mini-beats, each of which might be accentuated or omitted or played at normal volume. If one sequence of 32 beats was missing beat 17, whilst another included beat 17 but omitted beat 16, he could pick up the difference immediately. How did we know, if he

had no words? He couldn’t produce words, but he could repeat back through rapid tongue movements the difference between one sequence of drum-beats and another, no matter how complex and rapid the sequence of “notes” or “beats”. At three years old. How have different psychological theories attempted to explain Peter Myers’s artwork and Sanjay’s sensitivity to drumming?

PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES OF AUTISM 1. THE MINDBLINDNESS OR EMPATHIZING THEORY

The mindblindness theory of autism proposes that people with autism spectrum conditions have problems in empathizing .16 Empathizing is something that most “normal” people do with ease without thinking about it, most of the time, in interacting with others. It’s what we do when we imagine what someone else is experiencing, or what it would be like to “be in her shoes”. You could say empathizing is the bedrock of social interaction. Empathizing involves two major steps, which both happen at lightening speed: (a) the ability to attribute mental states (such as beliefs, desires, intentions, thoughts, and emotions) to other people, as a natural way of understanding them; and (b) 16

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having an automatic appropriate emotional reaction to other people’s mental states, which typically makes you care about their feelings. In this sense, empathizing includes what is normally meant by the terms “theory of mind”, or “mind-reading” ,17 which are used in the autism literature to refer to the capacity to assign motivations, inner feelings etc. to other people than oneself, but it goes beyond these notions, to include having an emotional reaction or response (such as sympathy). Empathizing essentially allows one to make sense of the behaviour of another person or animal. It allows you to predict what the other person might do next, and it gives you a rapid way into imagining how she might feel. Empathizing allows us to feel connected to another person’s experience, and respond appropriately to that person. Experimental studies of many different types reveal that people with autism spectrum conditions have difficulties in the development of empathizing. They cannot easily picture that someone else may have a different view of a situtation, for example, or may be delayed in their appreciation of this. They may pick up the more extreme emotions, but miss the subtle emotions on another’s face or in his voice. They may be relatively blind to the “language of 17

Empathy and communication are both two-way processes. It is not just that an autistic person may have difficulty empathizing with another, or others, but that another, or others, may have difficulty empathizing with an autistic person. The constant is that there is no common or shared reference point. Thus both, the autistic and non autistic alike, in relation to each other are ‘mindblind’. Independently they are not, together they are. Autistics may lack a non autistic theory of mind. Just as non autistics may lack an autistic theory of mind. Each is mindblind to the other.

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18. UNTITLED 250 x 190mm felt pen 25 August 1998, York

This is a geometric design. “Essence of self, perceived through a portal. A window on one’s soul, one’s inner being. Like one’s eyes may be a gateway to what lies within. (It is similar to the picture on p.38). This is not necessarily what one is, but more the raw material, potentials, from which self may emerge. It is like the moment an egg is fertilized. The being is not fully developed, not influenced by environment. It is the well, or spring, from which mighty rivers may flow.”

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19. UNTITLED 260 x 190mm felt pen 12 January 2000, York (2.40p.m.)

“Experimentation in forming an image, pattern, using a single, continual line (and circle as starting, or focal point).”

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the eyes”, sometimes even oblivious of how people are communicating non-verbally through their glances and their exchange of looks. The empathizing theory may help us to understand why someone like Peter Myers lives alone and rarely uses his telephone, but it doesn’t seem to explain why he produces the kind of meticulously ordered, exact art he does. This theory can help us to understand why Sanjay, the little Indian boy, is indifferent to his parents and to his peer group, but it cannot explain his talent in analyzing rhythm with such exactness. Peter Myers does not use his telephone because chatting on the phone is not something he enjoys or sees any point to. He finds using a telephone anxiety-inducing, because the social interaction element is too difficult for him to do fluently. He lives alone because relationships are too stressful .18 And Sanjay is indifferent to his parents because people’s behaviour is too unpredictable for him to be able to tune into it. What kind of psychological theory can explain Peter Myers’s fascination with the tiny details in his art (and in his work – he used to be a precision model maker) and Sanjay’s fascination with drum music’s minute changes in beat?

2. THE EMPATHIZING-SYSTEMIZING THEORY

A new scientific view of people with autism suggests that alongside their empathizing deficits, a different psychological process is intact or even superior to that of “normal” people. This is what we call systemizing. Whereas we think of empathizing as the drive to identify and respond to other people’s mental states, in order to understand and predict the behaviour of those people, we think of systemizing as the drive to analyze and build systems, in order to understand and predict the behaviour of impersonal events or inanimate or abstract entities. Systems are all around us in our environment, and fall into at least six kinds: • mechanical systems (such as machines and tools) • natural systems (such as biological and geographical phenomena)

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and confusing and complicated. Plus my need for social interaction is less.

• abstract systems (such as mathematics or computer programs) • motoric systems (such as piano finger technique, or a tennis shot) • organizable systems (such as a library catalogue, or a stamp collection) and • social systems (such as a business, or a football team).

The way we make sense of any of these systems is not in terms of mental states, but in terms of underlying rules and regularities. So

systemizing involves an initial analysis of the system down to its lowest level of detail. This allows one to identify potentially relevant parameters that may play a causal role in the behaviour of the system. These parameters are then systematically observed or manipulated, one by one, and their effects on the whole system are noted. To put it succinctly, systemizing entails an analysis of input–operation–output relationships. You feed in the inputs, try out different operations on the input, and then sit back and watch the totally predictable output of the system. Or to put in concretely, for little Sanjay, the drum is the input, the number of beats or rests in the bar is the operation, and the sound produced is the output. For Peter Myers, the pen is the input, using the pen in a specific way is the operation, and the drawing produced is the output. Young Sanjay can play the rhythms of the tabla drum over and over again, and notice if this is the exact same sequence (dah-d-d-d-d-dah) or if it is very slightly different (dah-d-d-dah-d-d). Despite their complexity, these patterns are highly predictable. Put in the very same input, introduce the very same operation, and you get the exact same output. Peter Myers can use the same pen over and over again, use the pen in an identical way (angle, pressure, duration, speed, type of ink, hand-action), and get the exact same output. And just as the output of the drum sequence reaches a completion or a conclusion, so the

output of the drawing reaches a completion or a conclusion. The sheer pleasure is in completing the system. There are several lines of evidence pointing to the idea that people with autism spectrum conditions have intact or even superior systemizing skills. First, clinical descriptions of children with autism or AS typically refer to their fascinations with systems of one type or another. It might be the family video player or computer, where the child will work out the functions of the machine to produce the effects he desires. Or it might be a favorite video. Most parents of children with autism or AS will tell you that once they have hit on a favorite video (e.g., Thomas the Tank Engine, or Harry Potter) their child will watch it not just half a dozen times, but hundreds or even thousands of times. What the parents may not realize (though it typically comes out later) is that the child is not just watching it for pleasure; rather, the child is analyzing, and storing the information with a precision that is nothing short of astonishing. The child will be able to anticipate what comes next in the movie, or repeat whole chunks of dialogue, not just word for word, but in the exact intonation of the character. One parent told us that at one point, the video of Thomas the Tank Engine had become so worn out by being played over a thousand times, there was considerable static on the tape. She replaced the tape with a brand new copy of Thomas the Tank Engine, thinking that 61

20. UNTITLED 250 x 190mm felt pen 2 July 1998, York

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“The tree represents self, dormant (e.g. like plants during winter months), like at sleep or rest, or when one experiences low energy levels. The intricate patterns represent the complexities of existence. It is an exercise in patterns and geometry. Even when seemingly at rest, potentials exist, and later may once again become activated.”

21. PETER’S HAND – MK-X-B 276 x 390mm ink January 2001, York

“I wanted to produce a slightly different version of ‘Peter’s Hand – MK-VIII’. A different pattern, a larger size, and using my other hand as the model.”

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her child would be happy with this replacement of his tape. But her child – who had no language – screamed and screamed in a terrible tantrum until she gave him back his original videotape. What he wanted was not a tape that approximated to the original (same story line, but different in sound quality, colour quality, and other technical variables) but the exact same one. It is hard to find an account of autism that does not involve the child being obsessed by some system or another. Typical examples include extreme fascinations with electricity pylons, burglar alarms, light switches, water taps (faucets), vacuum cleaners, washing machines, video players, trains, planes, and clocks. Sometimes the system that is the child’s obsession is quite simple. For example, a child might be fascinated by the workings of drainpipes, or the design of windows. Our research survey of obsessions in children with autism substantiates this observation: that their preoccupations tend to cluster in the area of systems. For some children, it is the system of prime numbers. For others, it is the system of football players’ goal averages. For yet others, it is the system of watching the way grains of sand fall from their fingers in highly predictable ways. You get the idea. Experimental studies converge on the same conclusion: children with autism may not only have intact systemizing, they may have accelerated or superior development in this domain. This profile in AS and autism (impaired empa64

thizing, together with superior systemizing) might be partly due to genetic factors, as autism and AS appear to run in families. Family studies bear out this talent in systemizing. A recent study of 1000 families found that fathers and grandfathers of children with autism or AS were more than twice as likely to work in the field of engineering – a precision, systemizing occupation, if ever there was one – compared to fathers and grandfathers of children with other disabilities. We focused on engineering because it is at least easy to document, but the idea might be that most parents of children with autism or AS might also be strongly attracted to systems of one sort or another. Related evidence comes from a survey of students at Cambridge University, studying either science subjects (physics, engineering, or maths) or humanities subjects (English or French literature). When asked about the family history of a range of psychiatric conditions, the students in the science group (who by definition would have excellent systemizing skills) showed a six-fold increase in the rate of autism in their families, and this was specific to autism. When you have a drive to systemize, you can apply this to almost any aspect of the environment, and start to analyze it in terms of its lawful regularities. We think Peter Myers’s art is a beautiful example of how systemizing can be used to develop both new techniques in drawing, and also new images and designs. In his work, it is clear he goes down to the lowest level of detail, focuses on these small units or

variables, and varies these in systematic ways, to produce stunning pieces of work. Can other psychological theories of autism also explain Peter Myers’s art? 3. EXECUTIVE DYSFUNCTION THEORY

A very different sort of theory is called the “executive dysfunction” theory. This essentially paints a negative view of the repetitive behaviour seen in autism, assuming that it is a form of perseveration, or is the result of an inability to shift attention. This deficit is assumed to arise from some form of frontal lobe brain damage (the frontal lobe is the part of the brain we use for planning). Applied to Peter Myers’s art, proponents of this theory would have to argue that it is repetitive because he cannot flexibly shift his actions. As if his self-control is in some ways impaired. This theory also predicts that because of a lack of control over action, people with autism cannot plan. We recognize that some forms of repetitive behaviour in autism may be due to executive deficits. Moreover, we recognize that as one tests people with autism who have additional learning disabilities, executive deficits are 19

more likely to be found. But the fact that it is possible to find people with AS who have no demonstrable executive dysfunction whilst still having deficits in empathizing and intact or superior systemizing suggests that executive dysfunction cannot be a core feature of autism spectrum conditions. For us, Peter Myers’s art is a stunning demonstration of his ability to plan .19 So any theory that claims AS entails a deficit in planning runs into a serious problem in trying to explain his wonderful work. This is a man who can plan the content of his drawings to the nth degree! A person with an executive dysfunction would also not be able to work as a precision-model maker (which Peter was for many years), where planning is essential. 19

4. WEAK CENTRAL COHERENCE THEORY

There is one more theory to tell you about. “Weak central coherence” theory claims that in autism, the individual’s preference is for local detail over global processing. The idea is that a normally developing child or adult has “strong” central coherence, leading them to rapidly focus on the larger picture, at the expense of small

I don’t think I plan a picture as such. I have a sense of what I want to do, but not a mental image in my head, that I in turn, recreate on paper or card. For myself, drawing is as much a subconscious, as it is a conscious, process. I do not draw what I see. I see what I draw. I concentrate specifically on one small area at a time, building up to a coherent whole, hopefully (joke). I don’t plan and then draw, but draw sensing my way along. It is similar to what Temple Grandin has said, namely ‘Non autistics move from the general to the specific, whereas autistics move from the specific to the general’. Thus in drawing I move from specific detail to generalized whole, bit by bit. My artwork is not planned out, mapped, prior to starting, not consciously at least. Sometimes an end result, product, is a delight to me also! As in life, I have no master plan. I meander along and hope for the best. Sometimes I learn by making mistakes, accidents, and correcting these can become part of the creative process, sort of doing something new, original, but not by design, but sheer chance (which of course is not to be underestimated in experimentation, life).

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22. MAZEWANDERING 258 x 190mm felt pen 22 June 1995, York

A gift for Susan. “This is a view from the inside looking out. The representation of ‘the world’ is in the top right of the picture, beyond the steel sentinel, who stands, as the façade, between inner self and outside world. At the base of the statue, stand two figures, children. One is more solid than the other and represents one’s known inner child. The other is in less defined form, and represents other less known aspects of the inner child. He is other aspects of the inner child, raw potential, memories of long ago, the ‘little professor’, the essence of one’s being. A path leads from the sentinel to ‘the world’ outside of self. And there are also the many paths within self. The maze is the maze of amazing self. It comprises all the intricacies, complexities of self. And there are many paths to explore, traverse, be. This picture is merely a representation, a momentary glimpse of the inner self, constantly changing, evolving, shifting shape, form, perception. One’s self is always self. It merely possesses many aspects to it.”

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23. C-H-TOO-OH! 190 x 270mm felt pen 10.21pm, 12 October 2001, Gulf of Mexico, aboard ship

“I like water, and desired to explore the pattern in water, things sensed, hidden, that may be given form in artistic representation. Specifically it is my interest in the foam patterns on the surface of the sea, hence my title ‘C-H-TOO-OH!’ (sea H20 – I like to play with words).”

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details. A child or adult on the autistic spectrum is thought of as having “weak” central coherence, leading them to the opposite focus: to dwell on each component part at the expense of the whole. On the face of it, this theory has a good chance of being able to explain Peter Myers’s art, and indeed has been used in Beate Hermelin’s new book to explain the range of “savant” abilities that one finds in autism. Weak central coherence has also been suggested on a number of psychological tests, both visual and verbal. If one were to choose between the two contending theories (systemizing vs. central coherence) to explain Peter’s art or Sanjay’s fascination with tabla, one would be hard-pressed to know which account is a better explanation for what we see. Both systemizing and weak central coherence assume excellent attention to detail. In the case of systemizing, the details are being identified as parameters that may then be observed as unchanging under repeated systematic operations. However, the systemizing and central coherence theories make opposite predictions when it comes to an individual with autism being able to understand a whole system. The systemizing theory predicts that people with an autism spectrum condition, faced with a system to learn, could learn it, so long as there are

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underlying rules and regularities to be discovered. Moreover, they could come to grasp that a change in one part of the system may have distant effects on another part of the system. Thus, if the task is a constructional one (building a balanced pyramid of cards, for example), they will be able to grasp that changing the angle of one of the cards may cause the whole stack to collapse. Changing the timing or angle of trajectory of just one juggling ball out of eight may lead to all eight being dropped. Taking out this particular component in the car engine may lead to this particular noise. What is being understood is the relationship between one parameter and one distal outcome. In our view, this is a problem for weak central coherence theory. It predicts people with AS should fail to understand whole (global) systems, or the relationships between parts of a system. They should remain forever at the level of individual details. Peter Myers artwork is testimony that a person with AS can get the details exactly right, but can also see the effect of each detail on the whole. He can achieve his desired effect – the whole picture – by arranging each tiny detail in just the right way. In short, he can systemize. 20 There is one last way in which weak central coherence theory runs into problems with Peter’s art. It has been claimed that such a processing style will lead the person to be

Yes I can systemize, follow pre set formula, but I concentrate on the specific, not the whole.

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24. PETER’S HAND – MK-XII 190 x 270mm felt pen 1.35pm, 6 October, 2002, Downtown Marriot, Kansas City, Missouri, USA

brain: we see a virtual triangle, since in reality there is no triangle out there. Our brain is tricked into believing there is more to life than is coming through the senses. At least some psychologists have claimed that the autistic brain is not prone to such a trick, and does not perceive virtual connections because they have no drive to integrate elements into a whole. But once again, Peter’s art presents a stark problem for this account. He not only uses tiny features to create whole pictures (systemizing), but he leaves out some of these features to create apparent shapes. Consider the illusory hands he has drawn in his Hand series (figures 13, 16, 17 and 24), which according to weak central coherence theory, he should not be able to see .21 21

“immune to the effects of visual illusions”. So, the idea is that, for example if presented with three V-shapes in a particular configuration, the non-autistic brain sees a triangle (even though there are no lines joining up the three V-shapes to produce a triangle), whilst the autistic brain faithfully records only what is there: three V-shapes. It has long been known (since the early 20th century Gestalt psychologists working in Germany) that we are prone to imagine connections between elements that are not actually present. Seeing this “gestalt”, or whole, is in fact an invention generated by our 21

A CLOSE LOOK AT TWO OF PETER’S ‘HAND’ PICTURES In ‘Peter’s Hand – MK-XII’, we see an effect that should – according to one theory – be impossible for a person with an autism spectrum condition to produce. He has created a simple illusion of his hand, alluded to simply by the fine outline superimposed on a regular background of stripes. The idea that people with autism are immune to illusions is hard to sustain when one is confronted with this picture. It is also interesting to see how the stripes get smaller as we

Autistics tend to perform at a superior level in embedded figures tests. So I like to use embedded figures to ‘say hello’, as I know autistics may perceive this more easily than non autistics.

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“I once wrote an essay, in English class, on some of my early memories. Having this essay returned to me after marking, in red pen my teacher had written ‘Wonderfied… I feel such a word should exist!’ (i.e. it was a made-up word). However, if one can have ‘mystified’, why not ‘wonderfied’ (full of wonder)? My understanding of language is that it is continually in the process of change, evolution (e.g. Shakespearean English differs from ‘modern’ English). Also, if a word or words come into common usage, they become part of the language (e.g. ‘mobile phone’, ‘worldwide web’, ‘the internet’, ‘laptop’). Well for myself, as the title of this picture, it has. ‘Wonderfied’ comprises some of my patterns, bubbles, wall, etc. It contains many of the elements used in many of my later and earlier pictures.

25. WONDERFIED 197 x 275mm felt pen 29 October 1994, York Gift for Susan

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I did this picture after writing to my friend Susan in the USA. I had written a letter to her, in which I also did a ‘doodle’. Susan liked my doodle and asked if I would do a picture for her, which I did, and ‘Wonderfied’ is it. Susan liked this picture and asked if she could print it in the MAAP, a newsletter for individuals on the autistic spectrum in the USA. I agreed, and this is the first of my pictures I have had in print. ‘Wonderfied’ contains many potentials, not fully developed individually, but there.”

26. WAALL 250 x 190mm felt pen 10 September 1998, York

“Representation of a wall, barrier, maze, shield, protection, security – defences activated. I can hide here, safe.”

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move from right to left, giving the appearance of depth or curvature of the background. Second, we see a strong effect of how Peter highlights what is background and what is foreground, simply by breaking the black and white stripes. As if picking out for the viewer what is relevant. Finally, we see a clear demonstration of “strong central coherence”, in the global picture of the whole hand – an effect not predicted by the weak central coherence theory. In ‘Peter’s Hand – MK-VII’ (p.12), we see all of these same signs that challenge the weak central coherence theory: the creation of illusion, global processing (of the hand), foregrounding and backgrounding. In defence of that theory, we also see a remarkable attention to detail, but other theories (such as the systemizing theory) also predict such an ability. Most important, however, in this picture, is the unquestionable evidence of Peter’s planning skills .22 A whole school of neuropsychologists have tried to argue for at least a decade that people with autism spectrum conditions have “executive dysfunction”, such that they cannot plan their actions. Was there ever a clearer example than in this picture that this theory does not apply universally? Peter has filled every piece of the page with his intricate lines and patterns – which we can only assume that he loves, given the patience that must be needed 22

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to create these. But the fact that no mistakes occur in managing to fit all of these together, so that none overlaps with any other, and all fit in the borders of the page, is testimony to extraordinary planning skill.

The patience that must be necessary to create this work is a wonderful illustration of the powerful concentration and use of focused attention in people with autism. What through one lens might be called obsessive, through another could be called an exact mind, careful, thorough, and perfectionist in every detail. Peter can teach scientists a thing or two.

CONCLUSIONS We think that Peter Myers’s art shows how the minds of people with autism spectrum conditions work in very precise, exact ways, and that

I think in a picture I plan very simply (i.e. simple rules, followed precisely). It is the overall effect which may be complex.

their planning skills need not be impaired. The autistic mind not only has excellent attention to detail, but the global whole can be envisaged just as well as the local parts. In this sense, his art refutes the central coherence theory. An artistic work can be thought of as a system, just as a model or a machine or an equation can be. To make the whole thing work, each component has to be considered in terms of the part it is going to play within the whole. We think the same holds true of the art of other published autistic savants. Stephen Wiltshire has an excellent eye for detail, a precision, and an exactness. But his drawings show planfulness (a problem for the executive function theory) and global coherence (a problem for the central coherence theory). Moreover, when he draws the inside of a building, such as St Paul’s Cathedral or the Reading Room in the British Museum, his art shows that he understands how the room works as a physical, architectural system – spatial perspective and geometry are demonstrated with mastery. The same was even true of the young, non-verbal Nadia, as she depicted the anatomy of the horse and rider in her obsessive drawings of these themes. Anatomy is a system, just as architecture is. And it is a puzzle as to how Peter Myers, or Stephen Wiltshire, or Nadia could produce such art if they could not see the central coherence of the scenes in front of them. This theory, in its extreme, would predict a form of agnosia (where, despite intact

sensory organs, and therefore ability to identify, say, visual features of an environment or object, an individual cannot identify and recognize the data of perception as forming a particular person or object), which is not what is found.

LIVING WITH AN EXACT MIND: GIFTS AND DIFFICULTIES GIFTS

Superior systemizing depends on exactness in information processing. Systemizing does not entail a search for approximate answers to questions. Systemizing is searching for the exact answer. We surmise that the systemizing mechanism is an exactness mechanism. By this we mean that it is only concerned with absolute facts of the most well-specified kind. A physics student with AS whom we met and assessed put it very clearly: “My mind is like a digital computer. Information is either there or not there. If it is there, it is stored with complete precision. People without autism have fuzzy logic”. The benefit of this is that all potentially important input is considered, and harnessed to the aim of predicting output. This can either just be done for fun (being able to predict how the patterns of soap on water-droplets will spread out as the water-droplet hits the sink), or for some more scientific or occupational end (being able to compare information across different situations, or mastering a particular technique). 73

27. UNTITLED 288 x 210mm ink 25 December 1984, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

“It is probably the most detailed, time-consuming picture I have drawn. An hour here and an hour there over many months.”

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28. UNTITLED2323 270 x 190mm felt pen 10:56pm, 20 March 2002, York

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As picture 3, p.10.

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People with AS have been described as having astonishingly detailed memories, so that for example many adults with AS can recall not only the date they visited a place many years earlier, but an enormous amount of detail about the visit which most people would find astonishing, and possibly irrelevant. If one asks people with AS about their “obsessional” interests, typically one uncovers the fact that the person has a collection of objects (e.g. CDs, videos, or even something unusual, like coffee mugs). The collection typically has hundreds of items, each of which can be recalled in precise detail, and sometimes may be stored in a very precise order. Many of the adults with AS we have met in our clinic have worked in occupations in which they could use their very precise mind in domains which are factual, rule-based, and in which patterns can be identified. DIFFICULTIES

These are the benefits and even gifts that can emerge from strong systemizing. But what are the downsides or the difficulties? When we first met Peter Myers, we asked him what we thought was an innocuous question. “Where do you live?” We were surprised when an apparently straight-forward question like this led to an unusually long delay in replying. Finally, he answered. “What information are you after?” 76

We paused, re-thinking this question from his perspective. He helped us out. “Do you want to know which country I live in, or which county I live in, or which city I live in, or which neighbourhood, or which street, or which house? Or maybe you are asking which room in the house?” For him, our question was a difficult one because it could be taken at too many different levels. The question alone did not allow him to resolve at which level to answer. He told us that an easier question would have been “Which city do you live in?”, since that could only have one correct answer. Questions that could have multiple answers are unanswerable via systemizing, as they cannot be resolved in an exact way. It is interesting that this kind of difficulty could be an expression both of an empathizing deficit (not being able to infer the intention behind the question) as well as the down-side of being a strong systemizer (not being able to deal with a topic or domain if the rules are ill-specified). “When did you leave home this morning?”, we asked Peter Myers. Now, he could answer: “At 7.06am”. It would have been inappropriate for him to say “At about 7 am” when he knew the correct answer was “7.06am”. Another man with AS told us he went to America last year, and included in his account

that he had flown on British Airways, and added that he had sat “in seat 14B”. This exactness is frequently seen in the speech of people with autism or AS. Their speech is described sometimes as pedantic. This can lead them to include far more detail in their answers than is needed for adequate communication. Here again we see the interaction of an empathizing deficit (failing to appreciate what the other person needs to know) and a systemizing property (exactness). One of the disadvantages of having your “exactness mechanism” too highly tuned is that it is harder to answer questions to which an exact answer is unavailable. We met a young man with AS who at school was perplexed as to why the maths teacher spent a whole lesson on “how to approximate”. In the example he gave, she was teaching the children how to get the answer to the question 13 x 13. She said, “You know 12 x 12, so just approximate. What is the answer to 13 x 13 likely to be? About how much?” He thought this lesson was bizarre. He knew that 13 x 13 was 169, so why should he approximate? So he thought, in this bizarre world, the teacher wants you to calculate 13 x 13 = 169, and then she wants you to add 1 to the answer. She praised him for answering “About 170”. What she never knew at the time, but what he revealed to us all those years later, was how counter-educational this was to him. To the non-autistic minds of the other children in his class, this exercise was readily

understandable. But to him, education was a game that teachers made up with rules that were difficult to fathom. Another six-year-old with AS asked his teacher “How do computers work?” She replied “Computers use binary codes of 1s and 0s to record all information in a precise way”. He had the insight to exclaim “But that’s how my mind works! I must be ‘binary boy’.” So, one of the downsides of an exact mind is feeling that you think in a totally different way from other people, and that many apparently ordinary tasks in everyday life are unresolvable with any precision. But one of the clear benefits of an exact mind is the wonderful art that Peter Myers has shared with us in this book. Peter, and others with autistic spectrum conditions, bring an originality and freshness to our world, and we would be impoverished without it. We hope you enjoy Peter Myers’s art as much as we did.

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29. CHRIMBO CARD DESIGN – 2001 270 x 190mm felt pen 10:44pm, 29 November 2001, York

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“I like to make my own Christmas cards. I have been doing this since Chrimbo 1998.”

FURTHER READING Baron-Cohen, S. (1995). ‘Mindblindness: an essay on autism and theory of mind.’ Boston: MIT Press/Bradford Books. This slim monograph describes the Mindblindness theory. Baron-Cohen, S, (2003) The Essential Difference: men, women, and the extreme male brain. Penguin (in the UK), and Basic Books (in the US). A popular science account of the empathizing-systemising theory. Baron-Cohen, S., & Wheelwright, S. (1999). ‘Obsessions in children with autism or Asperger Syndrome: a content analysis in terms of core domains of cognition.’ British Journal of Psychiatry 175, 484–490. This scientific survey is one of the first to look at the content of obsessions in autism.

Happé, F. (1996). ‘Studying weak central coherence at low levels: children with autism do not succumb to visual illusions. A research note.’ Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry 37, 873–877. The first report that people with autism are immune to visual illusions. Hermelin, B. (2002). Bright Splinters of the Mind : A Personal Story of Research with Autistic Savants. London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers. A wonderful account of savant skills and autism, interpreted through weak central coherence theory. Russell, J. (Ed.). (1997a). Autism as an Executive Disorder. Oxford: Oxford University Press. A comprehensive collection of essays exploring the executive dysfunction theory.

Baron-Cohen, S., Wheelwright, S., Scahill, V., Lawson, J., & Spong, A. (2001b). ‘Are intuitive physics and intuitive psychology independent?’ Journal of Developmental and Learning Disorders 5, 47–78. This experiment demonstrates an unexpected superiority in systemizing in children with Asperger syndrome.

Selfe, L. (1977). Nadia: A Case of Extraordinary Drawing Ability in an Autistic Child. London: Academic Press. One of the earliest examples of artistic savant skills in a child with autism.

Baron-Cohen, S., Wheelwright, S., Stott, C., Bolton, P., & Goodyer, I. (1997c). ‘Is there a link between engineering and autism?’ Autism: An International Journal of Research and Practice 1, 153–163. This is a family study of autism, showing that parental occupation is not random.

Wing, L. (1981). ‘Asperger Syndrome: a clinical account.’ Psychological Medicine 11, 115–130. The first account of AS in English.

Wiltshire, S. (1988). Cities: Drawings 2. London: Dent, J, M,. A stunning collection of art by a teenage boy with autism.

Frith, U. (1989). Autism: Explaining the enigma. Oxford: Basil Blackwell. A readable history of autism and a clear account of the weak central coherence theory. Frith, U. (1991). Autism and Asperger’s Syndrome. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. The first collection of essays about AS in English.

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