Why Art Matters: As Told By A Physician

“August Sizzle” 20x24, member of the “Lake Lovers” series to be released November 1st.

Jack Flores has been a loyal childhood friend of Dave’s for many years, and one of the wonderful things about marrying Dave is gaining so many new, wonderful friends. Jack and his wife Sofia recently moved back to Chicago to complete their medical residency programs and we have loved the chance to spend more time with them. They each have been tremendous supporters of my art through attending local shows and collecting both an original and custom commission of mine that now hang in their home. Jack is unique in that he grew up with a mother who is an art curator at the Art Institute of Chicago - as such he has a deep appreciation for the arts that is not often found in the field of sciences. I’ve always connected with him because of our shared interest for art and science and asked if he would contribute a personal piece about his experience to share in my journal. Without further ado, here is Jack’s story:

 “Jack, one day you’re going to thank me for dragging you to the art museum. You’re going to find a nice girl, or boy, that you’re going to fall madly in love with and you will win her over with some culture and kindness….I swear to God, I’m going to fill you with some culture, if it’s the last thing I ever do.”

                  Those wise words come from an amazing woman, my mother Kathleen O’Keefe. She has been a docent and curator at the Art Institute of Chicago for almost 15 years now. Growing up my brother, sister and I would be her guinea pigs, as she would practice her tours with us, or present a new piece on many early weekend mornings. Honestly, we initially kind of hated it. There was nothing worse as a 12 year old boy waking up at 8am (back then it might as well have been 4 am) and drive 30 minutes downtown to look at some 250 year old piece of paper with some color on it. I would have much rather been playing video games, throwing the lacrosse ball around, sleeping, or honestly anything else at that time. But she persevered and kept this up throughout high school and into college.

Fast forward to my first year in undergrad and I had high aspirations to become a successful orthopedic surgeon, and instead of the classic biology route, I decided I wanted to challenge myself and start off (relatively) undecided with classes set up to become either a mathematics, physics, or engineering major.  Second semester hit, and it looked like physics was my path to take. I signed up for my differential equations, quantum mechanics, organic chemistry 1, biology 2, and my mandatory history class for which I chose “Europe: the long 19th Century”.  I remember enjoying my European History AP class in high school, and honestly it was only two days a week on Mondays and Wednesdays at 2pm so I couldn’t pass this one up. It turned out to be one of the most fascinating classes of my 4 years. It was filled with hundreds of pages of reading, lengthy and vibrant discussions & arguments.

“Reading, seeing, and discussing the unbelievable interconnection between the events of the time and the artistic expression that coincided prompted me to immediately drop my Bachelor of Science physics route and earn a Bachelor of Arts as a European history major.”

Painting: “Path in the Woods”, 1887 by Vincent Van Gogh

Closely integrated with the class was a weekly 20-minute segment completely dedicated to art produced at that time. One day in particular we learned of the devastating Franco-Prussian War of 1870 and the ensuing Parisian revolution after a humiliating loss of Napoleon III to Otto von Bismark of Prussia. Hundreds of thousands men, women, and children died along with France going deep in debt to the victors -- the nation was in shambles. During this time a strong culture was created by the art connoisseurs -- realist paintings of ancient Greco-Roman mythology were the best (and only) pieces to be accepted to the prestigious Paris Salon. Following the brutal war, there was a rag tag team of artists who whipped together a new form of art that at the time was “blasphemous” in the community. They recognized that society was not in fact magical like the myths of old, and in no way structurally sound and exact as had been depicted. They wanted to express their style that life is not about accurate depictions, but rather capturing a feeling, experience, or an impression. Van Gogh, Manet, Monet, Seurat and many others defied the elite and created the Impressionist movement, one of the most revolutionary moments in artistic history, and the world would never be the same again. Reading, seeing, and discussing the unbelievable interconnection between the events of the time and the artistic expression that coincided prompted me to immediately drop my Bachelor of Science physics route and earn a Bachelor of Arts as a European history major.

“I was using both my left brain and my right as I would jump from Human Anatomy & Physiology in the morning to Atlantic Empires in the afternoon.”

Painting: “Autumn on the Seine at Argenteuil”, 1873 by Claude Monet

Three and a half amazing years later I left with a new perspective on life having split my time between my liberal arts classes and medical pre-requisites. I was using both my left brain and my right as I would jump from Human Anatomy & Physiology in the morning to Atlantic Empires in the afternoon. I developed valuable skills in reading and writing that I use to this day in medical research, and I truly learned to appreciate the human expression. I realized I may not want to be a surgeon (absolutely nothing bad to say, they save lives on a daily basis), but rather I wanted to pursue a career with more of a human interaction, and really engage with human emotion. Now, after four years of medical school and one year deep into my residency I am excited to keep working and work towards becoming an infectious disease & primary care specialist that focuses on working with patients with HIV/AIDS, urban LGBTQ populations, and general public living under the poverty line.  I have learned that there is beauty in all aspects of this world, and our actions and emotions truly do make a lasting impact on society, and I hope that my role as a physician can help those who need help the most and in turn may make themselves an impact on society. This conceptual mind set all stemmed from that one history class that opened up my eyes to my favorite art style, Impressionism, and the journey that followed.

In the end, of course, the one person who deserves more credit than most is the woman who has done the most, my mom. So thank you, for opening up my eyes to the epitome of the human expression and changing the way I view the world for the better.  When I moved onto medical school, she told me “Jack, don’t lose that artistic drive, keep reading, keep writing, and find your own expression of the world.”  I realized I have always been a fan of solving puzzles, and began to make a series of riddles. Here’s a little example for those who may enjoy puzzles too:

I can be a tree, a bridge, a lily pond, a battle, or a shelf,

Pieces of fruit, a chair, a woman, or even God himself,

These are just a few of the things that often make me sublime,

I’m simply a snapshot of someone’s emotions and perceptions of their world at that time,

Most of the time I’m free, but occasionally I’ll be a pretty price to pay

You can find me almost anywhere, from Dublin to New York, Paris to Bombay

Oh by the way, I did in fact meet an amazing woman who I am madly in love with, and we’ve developed together an immense passion (and obsession) with one of the most amazing human art forms by regularly attending many of the fantastic musicals that pass through Chicago.

So why does art matter? Because it’s what truly defines us as humans and we find it in all corners of progress and innovation…and it’s the human expression that gives our existence meaning.

Thank you Katherine for all your work, and I’m excited to see you’re many more “Impressions” to come,

Jack