In the master's thesis, we studied how children with special needs (hereinafter SN) depict the artistic motif of still life. We focused on the population of children with SN who are diagnosed with autistic disorder (AD) and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The analysis was conducted by means of artwork created by 7 to 17 year old children with AD and ADHD who spent the summer of 2019 at Melwood Summer Camp (USA). Their works were created according to our template of still life. With the help of the research, we found out that among individuals diagnosed with AD or ADHD, there are both similarities and differences in the depiction of the artistic motif of still life. The results of the analysis of the works of art of children with AD and children with ADHD showed similarities in each group, such as repetition of pure red colour (in the group with ADHD) and obvious distraction, which resulted in creating their own, imaginative motives. However, there were more differences than similarities between the works of art. The individuals with a developmental disorder show deviations from the anticipated artistic development, but it was not possible to link deficiencies in artistic development with a development disorder. Based on the obtained results, we cannot generalize our findings to the entire population with a particular disorder. We can conclude that in both groups, in the group of children with AD and the group of children with ADHD, the use of floating elements, variegated colours and the use of mixed colours is visible. In the group of children diagnosed with ADHD, we can find out that their artwork is closer to the expected artistic development than that of the group with AD. The research confirms that, despite similar diagnoses, the heterogeneity of the studied groups is visible.
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