This painting was created with watercolor pencils. It was designed in layers, both layers of depth, and also four rows of increasing height from foreground to background. This was an attempt to embrace the complexity of the nature depicted in the image and also the complexity of trying to improve chronic health conditions, which can be very daunting both for the patient and for the health provider. For the same reason, the perspective of the viewer is that of someone looking upwards. I really appreciate how willing my patient was to talk to me, to invite me into his home and tell me about his family, his experience with health care and with chronic conditions. Oftentimes we met in his garden, which is the subject of this piece. The garden is significant to the patient on an emotional level and also is a source of activity and exercise. Its dual significance made it the perfect object for the SCOPES project.
About the Artist: Camille Pierre
I chose to participate in SCOPES because I thought that making a work of art would help me reflect on my experience with Project FEED in a more creative and deep way than I might otherwise. Project FEED works towards establishing healthier eating and exercise habits with our patient partners, and I had participated in a similar project prior to coming to Duke. Rather than writing or speaking about the experience as I had in the past, I wanted to paint it and bring it to life. I used to study photography and I was excited about trying a new medium which is what brought me to using the watercolor pencils technique. Within medicine, I am interested in a career in surgery, and my extracurricular medical interests include studying lifestyle interventions and improving health outcomes related to food deserts.
