Art as a Result of the Highest Achievements of Genius

All art can be considered as a result of higher achievements in the work of geniuses. This paper considers the development of representations about talent and the genius in the history of esthetics. The author shows how the ancient image of the inspired poet anticipates later notions of genius, developed into the 18th and the 19th century. Geniuses were perceived as mediums, mediators between gods and people. The article also touches on the problem of the correlation between genius and sickness, which was reflected in many works of Russian psychiatrists of the early 20th century. In conclusion the author tries to give analyze different views on the nature of genius and to reveal the most typical lines of the ingenious person.