He especially identifies with Spider-Man because “I want images of power, and models, and helpfulness, and winning, and a goal to live for,” said Dr. Bell, who is also director of public and community psychiatry at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
Works of Glass
Five years ago, Dr. Natalie Semchyshyn took an 8-week evening class on leaded glass at a community college. She was in the middle of her dermatology residency at Washington University in St. Louis, and she initially worried what impact the class would have on her busy schedule.
“It's really easy to ignore your own needs when you're in training because it's all about learning and studying,” said Dr. Semchyshyn, who recently returned to St. Louis after training in California for 3 years. “Ultimately, it was so nurturing to me, just to be taking care of that little part of myself that is something other than medicine and other than concentrating on learning and working really hard and trying to push myself that way. It's kind of hard when you first start to take the time [for an art hobby], but I'm sure it's the same with people who have kids and really devote time to their family. I think it makes you a well-rounded person.”
In a home studio, she creates one-of-a-kind leaded glass designs intended for hanging as sun catchers or ornaments. She usually incorporates organic elements such as sliced polished geodes, rocks, and minerals but has also started to add pieces of wood and stone beads. “I usually get inspired to do a piece by a person, someone that I'm close to, their personality,” she said. “I feel I want to make a nice piece for them, and I go where that takes me.”
Each piece takes about 2 weeks to make and ranges in size from 8.5-by-11 inches to 4-by-4 feet. Making the design consumes the biggest chunk of time. She makes designs on paper and uses special scissors to cut a pattern for where the glass will be placed. “Once I have that down, I decide what glass is going to go where, what color, what kind of glass,” said Dr. Semchyshyn, who does not sell her work.
Finishing the creations brings her a sense of fulfillment. “There's a lot of thinking involved, and having a hand in making something that I think is really beautiful” is very satisfying, she said. “My favorite part is polishing it off at the end, holding it up, and seeing the final product. You're never 100% sure what it looks like until everything is all soldered together. You have to work with how the glass looks with light shining on it and also with light shining through it, which can be a totally different look.”
Trading the Scalpel for a Paintbrush
Dr. David S. Sumner of Springfield, Ill., hadn't used a paintbrush for 28 years, until he retired from surgical practice in 1998 at the age of 65.
He started painting while in high school, did some in college, medical school, and the Army. But he stopped in 1970 because of the demands of his clinical and academic career.
He began his golden years by using both oils and watercolors to paint everything from still lifes and landscapes to farms and urban scenes, both locally and in Europe.
“My wife thinks I do the best job on architectural things like cabins and churches in Europe,” said Dr. Sumner, who retired as professor of surgery and chief of the section of peripheral vascular surgery at Southern Illinois University in Springfield, a position he had held since 1975. The paintings “give me some recognition around the art circles in town,” he said. “It has brought me into contact with a whole different group of people than I had when I was in active practice.”
These days, he devotes a couple of hours each day to painting. “If you do have some artistic talent, keep working at it so there is something to fill in the gaps that occur when you leave practice,” he advised. “Painting is something you can do by yourself or with a group, any time of the day. It's a very versatile avocation.”
To view his works, visit
Watercolor of “Vernazza” shown here. Dr. David S. Sumner rediscovered his passion for art after retirement and spends time each day painting. Courtesy Dr. David S. Sumner