Art has always been my creative outlet and my greatest therapy. I was fortunate enough to find and connect with a group of local female physician artists on Facebook, and that is how I came to meet Vy Mui, MD, a psychiatrist and lover of all things arts and crafts. She approached me about participating in Via Colori Houston, a chalk art festival benefiting The Institute for Spirituality and Health. As a watercolor artist, the idea of working with a new medium on a huge and unfamiliar scale was daunting to me. However, she assured me that we could gather a group of fellow physician artists to pitch in and help.

I found an image online by Gerd Altmann—an eye with a globe of the world replacing the iris. As an ophthalmologist, this anatomy naturally appealed to me and felt familiar. Moreover, I thought it was just such a beautiful image that could be interpreted in so many different ways. Stephanie Fong, MD, who practices internal medicine and pediatrics, suggested adding the quote, “Choose to see the world through grateful eyes and it will never look the same again.” It worked out perfectly and became a message that could uplift people after a challenging couple of years.

I collaborated with these women to figure out how to execute this large art piece on a 10-foot by 10-foot square of pavement. We superimposed a grid over the image and then recreated a similar grid on the pavement. This allowed us to transfer the drawing square by square. I sketched it, and a few other female physicians came to help fill in and shade with pastels. Dana Kober, MD, a child psychiatrist who was involved with the project, said, “Much of my clinic day involves individual work. Creating art as a team was rewarding, and I’m still feeling joyful.” Drs. Mollie Gordon, Shruti Varadarajan, and Kathy Nguyen were also part of the team.

Together, we were able to create a beautiful, colorful piece that drew so much attention by those attending the festival. We were pleased with the positive reactions we received. We love collaborating on art projects and hope to do more in the future. In fact, we have been discussing the possibility of entering the Art Car Parade in Houston next year if we can find a sponsor.

Find more of Marlene’s art on Instagram @marlenemoralestollett.art