One of the most important European trends is the destigmatization of mental disorders. We propose looking at this topic from an unexpected angle. In the history of European art, madness often serves as a contrast to the Enlightenment ideal — the rational human being. Europe moved from mysticism toward reason, rejected emotion, and then once again turned to the embrace of the irrational. At this meeting, we will turn to the images of Bedlam by William Hogarth, the demons of William Blake, and also try to answer the question: did the early avant‑garde movements — Expressionism, Dada, early Surrealism — help remove the stigma and allow for an "other" view of reality?