A self-portrait by Vincent Van Gogh. The artist is thought to have experienced synesthesia. (Credit: Wikimedia Commons)
Oh, to be a synesthete, those rare people with access to an extra layer of perception. Sounds have colors. Words have taste. Colors play music. The list goes on. The phenomenon isn't totally understood by scientists, but the general idea is that those with synesthesia experience sensory inputs differently than the rest of us.
It's no wonder that synesthesia is common among artists. But for those of us that just see letters as letters and can't taste a song, synesthesia is more apt to inspire jealousy than creativity. We simply don't have the neural link-ups that lead to the ability.
