Psychiatr News March 7, 2008
Volume 43, Number 5, page 20
© 2008 American Psychiatric Association
APA Members Expose Their Creative Side
Stephanie Whyche
Psychiatrists and their significant others are invited to express their
artistic side at the APA Art Association's exhibit to be held at APA's annual
meeting in May.
The APA Art Association (APAAA), celebrating 40 years of existence, will
once again shine a light at APA's annual meeting on the artistic creativity
and expression of APA members who take their lesser known avocation as serious
as their more public professional calling.
Is there a hidden artistic side of you? Would you like to share your work
with your colleagues on a large stage? Well, the APAAA extends to you and
other APA members, as well as spouses and significant others, an invitation to
join in.
The art exhibit will run from Sunday, May 4, to Wednesday, May 7, in the L
Street Bridge Lobby on Level 2 of the Washington Convention Center. Visitors
to the exhibit will be able to vote on the pieces that they deem best, or at
least the ones that most catch their fancy. A reception, during which ribbons
will be awarded to winning artists, will be held from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. on
Thursday, May 6.
The size of the art association sometimes swells from 50 core members to
100 or more by exhibit day when non-APAAA members pay the $30 membership dues
to join the association, which includes the cost of showing up to two pieces
of art. Patron dues are $30. Additional pieces to show are $5 each, to a
maximum of six.
Entry forms must be received by April 25. (See end of article for details
about submitting an entry form and other requirements.)
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Habib Nathan, M.D., used a "glasswork fusing" technique to
create the above image of a galloping horse seemingly suspended in a block of
blue-white ice.
Credit: Habib Nathan, M. D.
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"The idea for this is to encourage other psychiatrists to consider
exhibiting their art," said psychiatrist and artist Habib Nathan, M.D.,
of San Antonio, Tex. Nathan, a 15-year member of the APAAA, exhibits his own
work yearly at the annual meeting, and presently—for the second
time—is serving as the art association's president.
The exhibit is open to a wide range of artistic media, Nathan said:
paintings (from oils to watercolors to mixed media), black and white or color
photography, sculpture, pottery, ceramics, graphics, computer art, textiles,
jewelry, arts and crafts, and poetry.
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The art glass menorah was also created by Nathan, who
is president of the APA Art Association.
Credit: Habib Nathan, M. D.
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As for Nathan, he specializes in decorative, handmade art glass. He started
off creating stained-glass objects d'art, but in short order his interest
shifted, and he has settled on what has become his medium of choice.
"I do glasswork fusing and sculpture glass," he said. "I
also make jewelry out of glass."
Glass fusing, he said, is a technique in which small pieces of
glass—clear or colored or of mixed hues—are arranged inside a kiln
fired up to 1,500 degrees Fahrenheit. They remain there until the glass pieces
meld into the texture of pliable taffy. Then he removes the glass from the
kiln and puts it onto a heat-resistant surface where he "slumps"
it into the creative form desired. The forms he prefers to create are colorful
glass decorative plates, bowls, and other such
receptacles.
Nathan has created more than 100 pieces over the years in his spare time,
which includes a three-day weekend now that he has cut his office hours back
to four days a week. But as has been his habit over the years, he will create
three new pieces just for the APAAA exhibit.
"It's a good hobby," he said. "It is very structured, and
for a psychiatrist, structure is very good—if you fail to follow
protocol your glass may
break."
The entry form and requirements to participate in the APA Art
Association's art exhibit can be accessed at
<www.psych.org/Events/AnnualMeeting.aspx>
by clicking on "APA Affiliate Programs" and then "APA Art
Association schedule" under "Resources." The entry form and
information also appear in the Annual Meeting Advance Registration Information
booklet. 
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