The Heritage and Legacy Project

Transcript

• 00:02Good afternoon and welcome.
• 00:05Can everybody hear me
• 00:06back there? Yeah, sound
• 00:07is OK. OK. OK. So today's a a
• 00:12a truly special grand rounds
• 00:16and I don't say that lightly.
• 00:19Let me start by telling you that this
• 00:21grand rounds is part, as you can see,
• 00:23of the Max Ritvo and Alan Alan B
• 00:26Slifka Memorial Lecture Series.
• 00:30Dear Max and Dear Allen.
• 00:32We're both alumni of Yale College,
• 00:35UC classes of 13 and 51,
• 00:39and they really were very devoted to this
• 00:42institution in in many different ways.
• 00:45Now, a very brief word,
• 00:47literally one word about each
• 00:49of these two individuals.
• 00:51When I think of Max, I think of many things,
• 00:53but the word whimsical comes to mind.
• 00:56He was, he was a poet.
• 00:58He was an artist.
• 00:59He was one of the funniest people who I knew.
• 01:02And when he comes to to mind and Alan,
• 01:07among the many things that
• 01:09he did in his career,
• 01:11was devoted to the idea of coexistence.
• 01:15And he specifically was interested in
• 01:18coexistence between Arabs and Jews in Israel,
• 01:22a topic that is of high relevance today.
• 01:25And our speaker today happened to go
• 01:29to medical school in Ukraine when
• 01:34it was Ukraine and it is now Russia.
• 01:37So there's all these connections about
• 01:39coexistence and about whimsy that I
• 01:42think we're going to be hearing about.
• 01:44This is the fifth such lecture.
• 01:47And let me just tell you that we've
• 01:49covered most of the art forms.
• 01:51The first talk was about use
• 01:55beatboxing as the medium,
• 01:57The second one use theater as a medium,
• 02:00and it was done by Zoom in the
• 02:02midst of the pandemic,
• 02:04which later became actually
• 02:06a play off Broadway.
• 02:08The third speaker happened to
• 02:10be a Nobel laureate in poetry,
• 02:13and last year's talk was centered
• 02:17on photography.
• 02:18So today we really haven't had
• 02:21anything using paint as the medium,
• 02:23but that's where we're going to go today.
• 02:27I'm incredibly grateful to Ari Ritvo,
• 02:30who I saw is online and maybe in a
• 02:34little bit we can ask her to say a few
• 02:38words after we hear from today's speaker.
• 02:40But today's speaker is we're going
• 02:43to tell you about today's speaker.
• 02:44He is a gentle giant.
• 02:47He is both of those things, actually.
• 02:48He actually played professional
• 02:50basketball when he was in medical school.
• 02:54We still fondly talk about him
• 02:57in the inpatient unit as a child
• 03:00whisperer because in his bigness
• 03:02he was so good with kids,
• 03:06so gentle and so IO is wonderful
• 03:13and just as wonderful as his
• 03:14daughter Ariella who is here today,
• 03:15who later will have a very special role.
• 03:18So let me just tell you something
• 03:20about the logistics.
• 03:23Ayo Ayo Tunde, Ayo Bello.
• 03:25Our artist will give us a a talk.
• 03:29Then when we're done, please come out.
• 03:31There's some refreshments as you saw
• 03:33of all sorts of octonage and and you
• 03:36know there's something for everyone.
• 03:38Grab something if you so desire.
• 03:40And then we're going to go straight
• 03:42up one floor and we're going to gather
• 03:45together and and then you know special
• 03:48magic will happen at that time.
• 03:50So please, please, please. Very important.
• 03:51When we're done we're going to go up.
• 03:53So gentle giant are you are you feeling it?
• 03:56IO. My dear friend.
• 03:57Wonderful artist. Incredible child.
• 03:59Psychiatrist.
• 03:59Father the the
• 04:00whole package. Come on up.
• 04:17Thank you, thank you, thank you,
• 04:18thank you all so very much.
• 04:20Thank you, Doctor Martin,
• 04:22for that introduction.
• 04:25If if someone had told me a few years
• 04:27ago that Doctor Martin would be
• 04:29introducing me for a talk, you know,
• 04:31I probably wouldn't have believed it.
• 04:33But thank you and welcome
• 04:36everyone to this special talk.
• 04:40I am incredibly honored and incredibly
• 04:43excited to be here today and to be
• 04:47the fifth speaker of this really,
• 04:49really special talk and presentation.
• 04:52And I'm really glad that
• 04:54you all could be here.
• 04:57So this talk is about a topic
• 05:01that is really special for me.
• 05:04Like Doctor Martin said, the You know,
• 05:08lecture series, you know,
• 05:09has been about the arts and you know,
• 05:12the visual arts,
• 05:13you know specifically is extremely special
• 05:16to me and has played a huge role in my life,
• 05:20you know, and in my professional
• 05:23development and my growth.
• 05:25And I am incredibly excited to
• 05:28share this journey with you.
• 05:31So we will get started.
• 05:35So this journey started several years
• 05:41ago in my birthplace in Nigeria,
• 05:45in a little town called Alaric in the
• 05:48western, you know, part of Nigeria.
• 05:50And I would say I had a typical
• 05:55happy childhood.
• 05:56This is my childhood home and I
• 06:00spent my days playing like most
• 06:04kids do and you know,
• 06:06doing things like riding my
• 06:09bike and you know,
• 06:11climbing like the trees at
• 06:13the backyard and exploring,
• 06:15you know, my world.
• 06:17I, you know, like to play basketball.
• 06:20I like to play soccer and would
• 06:22play like pick up soccer with like
• 06:24the kids in the neighborhood.
• 06:26And I also, you know, liked to draw.
• 06:30I like to color.
• 06:32I like to paint and that is
• 06:37really where the story starts.
• 06:40So in addition to all these things,
• 06:42I also like to read a lot.
• 06:45And I think one of the biggest
• 06:48legacies or one of the biggest
• 06:50gifts that my parents gave me
• 06:52was a desire to read early on.
• 06:54And right here is where I
• 06:56spent most of my time.
• 06:58So this was my library growing up,
• 07:01and this right here is called
• 07:06the Encyclopedia Britannica.
• 07:10And this was my Internet before the Internet,
• 07:14so before Snapchat and Tiktok and Instagram,
• 07:19this was where I spent most of my
• 07:22time and I probably read most of the
• 07:26books that you see here. So it was,
• 07:29it was a very interesting childhood.
• 07:32But as I started to read, I started
• 07:36to learn about artists and I learned,
• 07:39you know, not just about art,
• 07:43but I learned about the lives of artists.
• 07:47And, you know, it was in this corner and this
• 07:50Nuke that I started to learn about, you know,
• 07:53artists like Edward Munch and his incredibly,
• 07:57you know, powerful paintings.
• 07:59You know, I learned about,
• 08:00you know, Vincent van Gogh and his
• 08:05beautiful paintings of sunflowers.
• 08:08I, you know,
• 08:09learned about the great Michelangelo and was,
• 08:13you know, really, really stunned by the
• 08:18beauty of the Sistine Chapel and the works,
• 08:22you know, that were done there.
• 08:24I learned about Giorgio O'Keefe and,
• 08:27you know, her just pioneering
• 08:30work and her trailblazing work.
• 08:33And so before I even got to, you know,
• 08:37see any of these paintings in real life,
• 08:39I had already started to learn about them
• 08:42and already visualized them in my head.
• 08:47But not only did I learn about
• 08:50these artists and their paintings,
• 08:53their works, their triumphs,
• 08:55I also learned about their struggles.
• 08:58I also learned about their difficulties,
• 09:02their challenges, their lives.
• 09:05And I started to notice that a lot
• 09:07of the artists that I learned about,
• 09:10you know, had moments when they struggled,
• 09:13you know, with their mental health
• 09:15and with their Wellness.
• 09:16And I started to wonder about
• 09:19this connection.
• 09:19Does every artist, you know,
• 09:21struggle with this?
• 09:22What is, what is this, you know, connection?
• 09:25And you know, I started to explore this,
• 09:28you know more and more.
• 09:30And you know,
• 09:31this was really the start of
• 09:33this connection for me and this,
• 09:35this desire to explore this
• 09:38intersection of the visual arts and
• 09:41just Wellness and mental health.
• 09:43And I continued to explore this
• 09:47and eventually realized that,
• 09:49you know, art doesn't cause you
• 09:52to have mental health issues.
• 09:55Art can, however,
• 09:58be a a therapeutic solution.
• 10:02Art can be a soothing manner,
• 10:07a soothing, A soothing pathway to to
• 10:12dealing with mental health issues.
• 10:15And I noticed that a lot of these artists
• 10:19used their arts as therapeutic channels,
• 10:22used their art as you
• 10:25know means of catharsis,
• 10:27of releasing these struggles and I
• 10:31started to really explore this further.
• 10:33So as I started to paint and also
• 10:38started to grow in my own artistic,
• 10:42you know,
• 10:43desire,
• 10:43I started to also make paintings
• 10:46that were modeled or similar to
• 10:48these people that I had read about.
• 10:51So in my 2018 painting,
• 10:55you know, I modeled, you know,
• 10:57the sunflowers that you see in
• 11:00the background to, you know,
• 11:02the sunflowers that I would read about
• 11:05with Vincent van Gogh in my 2017 painting,
• 11:12this one, you know,
• 11:14particularly heroin.
• 11:14I,
• 11:15you know,
• 11:16modeled the background that you see,
• 11:20you know, with the with the
• 11:22visual vibrancy of Edward Monk.
• 11:24And you know, this, this was particularly
• 11:28interesting because I made this painting
• 11:31after I got into a car accident in 2017.
• 11:35I was, you know, driving back from work,
• 11:39you know, a freshly minted intern and
• 11:42I was sleep deprived and you know,
• 11:45just, you know, having a rough week
• 11:47and I fell asleep on the wheel.
• 11:50And you know, at the time it was,
• 11:53it was a near miss. And you know,
• 11:56it was something that I struggled with.
• 11:58You know, afterwards I had,
• 12:01you know, nightmares.
• 12:02You know, I had, you know,
• 12:05almost like mini PTSDI would call it.
• 12:08And the arts, you know,
• 12:10was really the way that I was able
• 12:13to cope and you know, navigate this.
• 12:16So like I said earlier,
• 12:17the arts has played a big role in my
• 12:20life therapeutically and you know,
• 12:22just in my professional development.
• 12:25So we Fast forward to now,
• 12:29you know, I am, you know,
• 12:32both a child psychiatrist
• 12:34and a visual artist.
• 12:36And I believe these two aspects of me,
• 12:39you know,
• 12:40have have come together and you know,
• 12:43now it makes sense, you know.
• 12:45And now I look back, you know,
• 12:47when when people ask me why did you,
• 12:49you know,
• 12:50pick psychiatry as your specialty, I say no.
• 12:53Psychiatry picked me.
• 12:54You know, all those years when I was reading,
• 12:58you know, about artists,
• 12:59you know, I,
• 13:01I before I knew what psychiatry was
• 13:03or what mental health really was,
• 13:05I had this understanding.
• 13:07And you know, eventually I am able to,
• 13:12you know, explore this intersection.
• 13:14So as I continued, you know,
• 13:18in my journey, you know,
• 13:19through intern year and,
• 13:21you know, eventually, you know,
• 13:23coming to Yale for my child psychiatry
• 13:26fellowship, I knew that this was,
• 13:30this was a field or this was a
• 13:32area that I wanted to pursue.
• 13:34And I thankful to, you know,
• 13:37this incredible program at the
• 13:39Child Study Center. Dr.
• 13:40Stubby, where where is she?
• 13:42Doctor Stubby's. Yup.
• 13:43Yup.
• 13:44That's that's my program director.
• 13:47You know, for, you know,
• 13:48making a program that you know fosters,
• 13:51you know, creativity and, you know,
• 13:53thinking outside the box, you know.
• 13:56But when I arrived at Yale,
• 13:59especially this building,
• 14:00the specific building,
• 14:02the Child Study Center,
• 14:04I ran into a an inscription
• 14:08that is very powerful.
• 14:12And I don't know if anyone
• 14:14knows where this is.
• 14:16It might be a little game
• 14:19that we're gonna play,
• 14:20but I saw this phrase and I thought it was
• 14:24very powerful from generation to generation.
• 14:27And,
• 14:28you know,
• 14:28it was something that I pondered
• 14:30on and it started to make sense to
• 14:34me and it started to dawn on me.
• 14:38You know that in a place like this
• 14:44you you don't just come here
• 14:47and start things from scratch.
• 14:51We are literally sitting on
• 14:56the shoulders of giants.
• 14:57You know, we're literally taking
• 15:00on the work that has been done
• 15:04or has been started, you know,
• 15:07multiple, you know, years ago.
• 15:10We're taking on a legacy where we're taking
• 15:14on a heritage that the greats in child
• 15:18psychiatry and the grades and, you know,
• 15:22mental health have passed on to us.
• 15:24And, you know,
• 15:25it was a very powerful inscription that I,
• 15:29I started to take to heart.
• 15:31And when I got here,
• 15:33I started to learn about our incredible,
• 15:36you know,
• 15:38incredible teachers, mentors,
• 15:46not the least. And Albert Jasonet,
• 15:50one of The Pioneers, you know, of child
• 15:53psychiatry here at the Child Study Center.
• 15:56I didn't know he was going to be here today.
• 15:59But Doctor James Comer who's right there,
• 16:07whose incredible work, you know,
• 16:09we still appreciate and are, are,
• 16:12you know, going off of today.
• 16:15And you know, these, these giants really
• 16:19got me thinking about this idea of legacy.
• 16:23And you know what it means,
• 16:25this idea of heritage and you know how
• 16:28it affects, you know, our work and
• 16:32how we approach our work every day.
• 16:35So I started to, you know,
• 16:38have this conversation about moving this,
• 16:42you know, intersection of visual
• 16:44arts and psychiatry forward.
• 16:46And we came up with the
• 16:48idea to make a portrait.
• 16:50But before we started that we had to explore,
• 16:53you know, just the general state
• 16:56of portraiture in general.
• 16:58And we discovered a couple of things.
• 17:01So medical portraiture is,
• 17:03is a way that institutions,
• 17:05you know, medical schools,
• 17:07hospitals have used to really display
• 17:11their values and display, you know,
• 17:14their, their, their culture, you know,
• 17:17on the walls of their institutions.
• 17:20And we,
• 17:21you know discovered that medical
• 17:24iconography in general was the study and
• 17:28enumeration of outstanding physicians
• 17:31through our recording of their portraits.
• 17:35And so we started to think about
• 17:38how you know this, you know,
• 17:40while you know, while it sounds good,
• 17:44you know we were interested in this part,
• 17:47you know where we started to question
• 17:50that you know is it only physicians,
• 17:52you know that should be displayed
• 17:55or showed in portraiture and
• 17:58do they have to be outstanding.
• 18:01You know the the the entire
• 18:04medical institution,
• 18:05you know is powered by so much more
• 18:08than you know, just the physicians.
• 18:10And you know in child mental
• 18:13health specifically, you know,
• 18:14it is as we all know,
• 18:16a collaborative process until
• 18:18we started to really reflect on,
• 18:21you know what we wanted this portrait,
• 18:23you know, to show.
• 18:24And we were started thinking about
• 18:27trainees as well because medical
• 18:30trainees are a group of people
• 18:33that have often been overlooked
• 18:35in portraiture just, you know,
• 18:37by the nature of their, you know,
• 18:40transient time and institutions.
• 18:42And we knew that this group of
• 18:45people were incredibly important and,
• 18:48you know,
• 18:49made the workforce of most institutions.
• 18:52So we wanted to make sure that
• 18:55we consider that as well.
• 18:57And also, you know, just displaying,
• 19:00you know, the,
• 19:01the accurate values and ideals
• 19:04of diversity and you know,
• 19:06inclusion was something that
• 19:08was really important to us.
• 19:10So we we really took that to heart
• 19:13and that was really where the idea
• 19:16for the Legacy and the Heritage
• 19:18project was was born.
• 19:20And as you can see we are wearing masks.
• 19:22So it it tells you what time and
• 19:26you know what the climate was,
• 19:28you know, at that time.
• 19:30And so, you know,
• 19:32this idea was born and we decided
• 19:36that we were going to make a
• 19:39portrait and we wanted, you know,
• 19:42the portrait to one, you know,
• 19:45embellish this child mental health space
• 19:50and one of the portrait to show our values,
• 19:54you know,
• 19:55show that we were welcoming,
• 19:56show that we were inclusive, you know.
• 20:00And two, we wanted to explore this idea of
• 20:05legacy and heritage and how it affected.
• 20:09You know the idea and the approach
• 20:11that trainees have, you know,
• 20:13in their everyday work and in
• 20:16their everyday approach to work.
• 20:17So, you know, we started off by
• 20:22interviewing trainees and child psychiatry,
• 20:27psychology and the social work programs,
• 20:30and we started by interviewing
• 20:33them and having conversations
• 20:36about this idea of legacy.
• 20:38I muted the sound because
• 20:41of privacy concerns.
• 20:43But we we started this interview series
• 20:46and started to have conversations about,
• 20:50you know, what does legacy mean to you and
• 20:53what does the idea of heritage mean to you?
• 20:57How do you see these things and apply them,
• 21:01you know, to your, to your daily practice.
• 21:04And it was pretty powerful.
• 21:05We got incredible, you know, responses.
• 21:09Our trainees were magnificent with, you know,
• 21:13just showing up and and being really present.
• 21:19And you know, for a lot of these
• 21:22clinicians and these trainees,
• 21:24they are used to being in positions
• 21:26where they're the ones interviewing,
• 21:28you know, they're the ones,
• 21:30you know, being exploring.
• 21:33So at this point,
• 21:35it was very interesting to turn
• 21:37the tables around and have them,
• 21:39you know, be interviewed and
• 21:41hear their stories and hear,
• 21:43you know, their, you know,
• 21:45their trajectories.
• 21:46And so the interviews that we did were,
• 21:51you know,
• 21:52recorded and the the information transcribed
• 21:56into a transcription software called In Vivo.
• 22:00And we analyzed, you know,
• 22:02that data using a process
• 22:07called narrative inquiry.
• 22:08It's basically a method that researchers
• 22:12use to understand the stories,
• 22:15individual stories and make meaning
• 22:19from them in a broader sense.
• 22:21So we you know had and a wonderful
• 22:25turn out and you know by the end of
• 22:29this process we were able to publish
• 22:32an article on you know this entire
• 22:37project and you know feel free to you
• 22:40know scan and you know get a better
• 22:43understanding of the depth you know
• 22:46that we went into and some of the
• 22:48results you know that we were able to garner.
• 22:52I will give a, you know,
• 22:53a brief summary of what we were able to get.
• 22:56So our our analysis basically found
• 23:02certain themes and there were three
• 23:04themes that stood out,
• 23:05you know, the greatest.
• 23:07The first theme is this idea of heritage
• 23:11and how you know past experiences,
• 23:15you know,
• 23:17past struggles, you know,
• 23:18have played a role in people's trajectory.
• 23:22We saw this theme of becoming
• 23:26which is basically the process of
• 23:31what we call professionalization,
• 23:33you know,
• 23:34which is how people become or transition
• 23:38from trainees to fully accomplished
• 23:41or fully trained clinicians.
• 23:44And you know how you know
• 23:47interactions with peers,
• 23:48interaction with patients,
• 23:50interactions with the medical institution
• 23:54shape you know these trajectories.
• 23:57And we had the sense of legacy as well,
• 24:00a theme of legacy that talked about how
• 24:04people hoped to be remembered and you know,
• 24:07some of the future work that people
• 24:10hoped to do reflections for the future.
• 24:13And it was very powerful to
• 24:15to be able to see, you know,
• 24:18this collective collective vision
• 24:21of trainees and you know this,
• 24:25this was published in Frontiers and
• 24:27Child Psychiatry and please scan and,
• 24:30you know, take a deeper look
• 24:32at what we were able to do.
• 24:34I'd like to give a quick shout
• 24:37out to the team, you know,
• 24:40that worked with me on this project.
• 24:43Lelia Benoit who happens to be
• 24:45here in the crowd at Adelaide
• 24:48who's a medical student.
• 24:50Karen Siegel and of course Doctor Martin
• 24:54who played a big role in this project.
• 24:57Thank you all.
• 24:58But now we are moving to
• 25:00a very interesting part,
• 25:02which is the actual process of making
• 25:08this oil painted this this project basically.
• 25:14So I like to talk about the stages
• 25:17of making an oil painting and
• 25:19it is not what you think it is.
• 25:24I like to think about the
• 25:27creative process as you know,
• 25:30very finely explained by this
• 25:32graph and by this timeline.
• 25:35So it starts and everything is great and
• 25:41then things start to change, you know.
• 25:45So we will talk about how
• 25:47this trajectory goes on.
• 25:49But as you saw in the last couple of slides,
• 25:53we had interviews with the trainees
• 25:55and you know, we're able to, you know,
• 25:59record those interviews and you know,
• 26:02really delve into those interviews.
• 26:04But after we had those interviews,
• 26:07we had sessions, photography sessions,
• 26:11you know, where we had, you know,
• 26:14each participant pose, you know for,
• 26:20for photograph and you know ask them
• 26:24to really bring with them or bring
• 26:28along with them things that were really
• 26:31important or significant, you know,
• 26:34to them and you know, ask them to,
• 26:37you know choose like their own,
• 26:40you know,
• 26:40positions how they wanted to be painted.
• 26:43And we had a wonderful, you know,
• 26:47turn out of,
• 26:48you know people and participants who
• 26:51you know brought their family members,
• 26:53you know brought their pets,
• 26:55you know brought objects that were
• 26:58sentimental to them and you know really,
• 27:01really took it to heart.
• 27:03And you know we had a really wonderful,
• 27:07you know,
• 27:08turn out and you know through the process,
• 27:12you know it it really gave a
• 27:14sense of you know what what we
• 27:17have and what we value you know,
• 27:20as a medical institution and as a community.
• 27:24And it was a really wonderful
• 27:27process to get this going.
• 27:30So at this point we're at the start
• 27:32and you know everything is great and
• 27:36we decide that because of the size or
• 27:39because of the magnitude of this project,
• 27:43we would need a very large
• 27:46canvas and we had to order,
• 27:49custom order this canvas.
• 27:50And as you can see it is being delivered
• 27:54to the child study center at 350
• 27:58George right now and I am 6 foot 8.
• 28:01So you can tell how big you know
• 28:04that canvas is. It was huge.
• 28:07And, you know,
• 28:09went through the process of
• 28:13unveiling it for the first time with
• 28:16my lovely daughter there, Arella.
• 28:18And you know, I had never, you know,
• 28:22painted a canvas that was this large,
• 28:25you know, So this was really a
• 28:28first for me and it was incredibly
• 28:32challenging to get it started, you know,
• 28:35But we were able to do it anyway.
• 28:37So at this point, everything is awesome.
• 28:41Everything is going great.
• 28:42You know, everyone is saying good job,
• 28:46wonderful. This is, you know,
• 28:48the sort of like the start of
• 28:50a marathon where you know,
• 28:52you you hear the sound and you're running
• 28:54and you're giving everyone high fives.
• 28:56And it's awesome.
• 28:57That's that's where this is right now.
• 29:00But then I had to get down to
• 29:02work and that was where things,
• 29:05you know, really got started.
• 29:07And so for the process of oil painting,
• 29:09it is a little different
• 29:12than a typical painting is.
• 29:15All painting is a very unique medium
• 29:19and that it has to be built over layers.
• 29:23So typically you start before
• 29:26you start all painting.
• 29:28You start with a glaze that looks
• 29:31a little bit something like this.
• 29:32Usually we use a color called raw umber
• 29:37as the glaze for sort of the base
• 29:41and you know it looks really dark.
• 29:44And the reason is,
• 29:46you know it's a very fast drying medium
• 29:49and it forms the base that subsequent
• 29:53subsequent layers of paint will go on.
• 29:59So after put in a glaze of raw
• 30:02amber you move on to the second
• 30:05layer of the painting which you know
• 30:08starts to layer up layer by layer.
• 30:12And the reason you know for
• 30:14this graduated you know,
• 30:15layer approach is you know all
• 30:19paint dries at different times,
• 30:22so thinner layers of oil dry much
• 30:27quicker than thicker layers of oil.
• 30:30So you have to go from thin to
• 30:33thick or thick to thin and you
• 30:37know this graduated approach,
• 30:39make sure that you know both all
• 30:43three layers of the paint bond you
• 30:46know accurately and you know it
• 30:49doesn't lead to sort of a crack in
• 30:52later on if it's done inappropriately.
• 30:55I made an article or I published
• 30:58an article on this process a few
• 31:01years ago called Laid on Thick
• 31:09and you know, it basically explains,
• 31:12you know this process.
• 31:14I made this painting that you see here
• 31:18on peripartum depression case that I
• 31:24have the opportunity to treat and I
• 31:28saw these intersections, you know,
• 31:31between the process of oil painting
• 31:33and the process of attachment.
• 31:37So when we think about the
• 31:39the layers of paint,
• 31:41you know that build on each other, it it,
• 31:45it sort of reflects the the way attachment
• 31:49you know goes and how a child bonds,
• 31:53you know with their caregiver
• 31:56and you know the bonding has to
• 31:59happen in subsequent layers.
• 32:01And in the same way with all painting,
• 32:04the layers have to go in a certain way.
• 32:08And if that doesn't happen it can
• 32:10lead to a crack in you know the same
• 32:13way that we can see sort of like a
• 32:16psychological crack in in children
• 32:19who unfortunately did not receive
• 32:22this graduated layer of attachment.
• 32:25So it was a very interesting article and
• 32:30please feel free to scan and take a look.
• 32:35So moving on to the next phase,
• 32:39I I really like this quote
• 32:42by Vincent van Gogh.
• 32:44Great things are done by a series of
• 32:47small things brought together and this
• 32:50was a quote that really rang true as
• 32:54I continued to make this portrait.
• 32:58So I'm gonna play this scenario or this
• 33:04painting for you, and
• 33:08I want you to keep an eye on the Blues.
• 33:23So what you just saw there was
• 33:27actually four different shades of
• 33:30blue and four different types of blue
• 33:34coming together to make that hoodie.
• 33:39And if you take a look at it again,
• 33:43you will see that one,
• 33:46just one shade of blue is not
• 33:50able to accomplish this task
• 33:52or accomplish this paint in.
• 33:55When all those shades, however,
• 33:57come together, they're able to,
• 34:00you know, make the right shade,
• 34:02make the right gradient and it it really,
• 34:07you know, that quote really came
• 34:10to mind as I did this and that one,
• 34:13one single shade of blue is not able to
• 34:17do what 4 shades can come together to do.
• 34:21And I think this really highlights our
• 34:23approach and you know child mental health,
• 34:26you know where it's a collaborative
• 34:29approach and the more that we
• 34:32are able to combine our skills,
• 34:34the more we're able to combine our our
• 34:38talents, the more we're able to achieve.
• 34:41And so it was a very interesting lesson
• 34:45that I, you know, wanted to highlight.
• 34:50You know, also the, the,
• 34:51the names, you know,
• 34:53the ultramarine blue and the cyriline
• 34:56blue and the Cobalt blue are very
• 34:59interesting because you know,
• 35:02it really highlights the, you know,
• 35:05just the artistic history,
• 35:07you know, behind all painting.
• 35:09So for example,
• 35:11Ultramarine blue is a very unique
• 35:14painting and that is a very unique
• 35:17shade of paint and that it was
• 35:21extremely rare to find Ultramarine
• 35:24Blue in the ancient days.
• 35:28You actually had to travel,
• 35:31you know,
• 35:32to the mountains in Afghanistan
• 35:34to get this specific type of
• 35:37rock called lapis lazuli.
• 35:40And it was incredibly difficult to extract,
• 35:44you know, the ultramarine.
• 35:45It had to be an A,
• 35:48a very tedious process where
• 35:50the the rock was really finely
• 35:53ground into this powdered form.
• 35:57And even in this powdered form,
• 35:59you had to extract the deep blue, you know,
• 36:05by a process that's very complicated.
• 36:09And most people,
• 36:11because of how complicated
• 36:13it was to extract the blue,
• 36:16would only reserve this blue for
• 36:18very special parts of the painting.
• 36:21And back in the Renaissance,
• 36:22the most special part of the painting was
• 36:26always the garment of the Virgin Mary.
• 36:30And so it was an extremely rare,
• 36:34you know, pigment.
• 36:35And you know even the name,
• 36:37you know ultramarine,
• 36:39you know ultra,
• 36:40you know being Latin for beyond
• 36:43and mare being Latin for the sea,
• 36:46you know,
• 36:47literally translated to beyond the
• 36:50sea which which indicated how far
• 36:52people had to go to get this paint in.
• 36:56And you know,
• 36:58in the same way I reflected at
• 37:01how we as mental health clinicians
• 37:04often have to go above and beyond,
• 37:08you know, for the children and
• 37:10the families that we work with.
• 37:12And you know,
• 37:14how this, you know,
• 37:16intersection really shows itself and,
• 37:19you know, just one color.
• 37:21You know,
• 37:22same thing can be said for Cyril in blue,
• 37:25you know, where you know,
• 37:28this particular shade of blue,
• 37:31you know, has such a rich,
• 37:32you know, artistic history.
• 37:34One of the most interesting stories was,
• 37:37you know, in a, in a cafe in the late,
• 37:41you know, in the early 1900s in Paris,
• 37:44You know, where a Spanish,
• 37:47you know, painter was, you know,
• 37:50having coffee, you know,
• 37:52with with his friends and,
• 37:55you know, unfortunately pulled
• 37:58out a revolver and shot himself.
• 38:02And his friends, one of which, you know,
• 38:07included the famous Pablo Picasso,
• 38:10was so devastated about this loss
• 38:14that he decided that he was only gonna
• 38:18use one shade of blue for his next,
• 38:22you know, set of paintings.
• 38:24And, you know,
• 38:25this gave birth to the blue period,
• 38:27you know, by Pablo Picasso,
• 38:29which is one of the most iconic,
• 38:32you know, pieces of work that we have.
• 38:35And so the blue, you know, represents a lot.
• 38:39Blue can represent spirituality.
• 38:43Blue can represent peace.
• 38:44You know, when the United Nations,
• 38:47you know, decided that they
• 38:49wanted to reinvent their emblem,
• 38:52they decided on a shade of blue,
• 38:55cerulean blue, that gave off,
• 38:59you know, a sense of peace and,
• 39:02you know, a sense of togetherness.
• 39:05And, you know, this was the same shade as,
• 39:09you know, Picasso, you know,
• 39:12used in his paintings.
• 39:15When you also think about,
• 39:16you know, Hindu religions,
• 39:18a lot of Hindu gods,
• 39:21a pair in a particular shade
• 39:24of blue that really, you know,
• 39:27represents spirituality and you know,
• 39:30represents peace, you know,
• 39:32so every single color, you know,
• 39:35in oil painting really has this
• 39:38rich artistic history.
• 39:40And even the name, you know,
• 39:42translates the sky blue,
• 39:44you know.
• 39:44So it's it's a very rich process that
• 39:51I was, you know, able to do.
• 39:54So now at this point you
• 39:57know I am 222 paintings in.
• 40:01And I realized that I have to do
• 40:05this 24 more times each process,
• 40:08you know that you saw right there took,
• 40:11you know maybe 10 hours,
• 40:13you know, to do. And it was,
• 40:16it was a very daunting process.
• 40:19And you know at this point I'm sort
• 40:22of somewhere between this is tricky
• 40:24where I'm like wow like this this
• 40:27is going to take a lot of time and I
• 40:29don't have protected time for this.
• 40:31I am a first year child psychiatry fellow,
• 40:35you know So it was it was quite
• 40:38tricky and it was it started to
• 40:41become more difficult where I almost
• 40:43started to question that like why
• 40:45did I decide to do this
• 40:47again how did I get here? And
• 40:51it was, it was challenging.
• 40:52I gradually went from,
• 40:55you know, one person you know,
• 40:58on the canvas to 2:00 to 3:00 and then four.
• 41:04And then before you know it,
• 41:06I had a whole, you know,
• 41:07bunch of people on the canvas.
• 41:10But it started to get more complicated
• 41:13because, you know, going into this,
• 41:15I had a loose idea of what I wanted to do.
• 41:19But as people started to grow,
• 41:22you know, and the painting,
• 41:24it became more and more
• 41:26complicated as to the direction,
• 41:29as to the positioning, as to, you know,
• 41:32how you know someone wanted to be placed
• 41:35or how someone wanted to be represented.
• 41:38And it became more and more complex.
• 41:42And I started to question, you know,
• 41:44whether I wanted to go ahead with this
• 41:47project because of how complex it was.
• 41:50And you know, like I said,
• 41:52I was also a fellow and you know,
• 41:55going through a training.
• 41:56So it was, it was a lot.
• 41:59And as I began to work,
• 42:03things became a little more dire.
• 42:06I started to experience a lot of loneliness.
• 42:11It's sort of at that point of a marathon,
• 42:14you know,
• 42:15like we were saying when the applause sort of
• 42:18dies down and you realize that wait a minute,
• 42:20I'm running a marathon here,
• 42:22I how am I going to get through this?
• 42:25And, you know, there were many nights when,
• 42:29you know, I was just by myself and,
• 42:31you know, painting and,
• 42:33you know, sort of reflecting,
• 42:34you know, the process of all
• 42:37paints is very therapeutic.
• 42:39But at the same time,
• 42:42it can also be very challenging
• 42:44because it's very quiet and sometimes
• 42:47you're left alone to be confronted
• 42:50with your thoughts and you know,
• 42:53with you know your life experiences.
• 42:55And you know,
• 42:56at the time I was also going
• 42:58through like a number of things,
• 43:00you know, in my personal life,
• 43:01you know, the end of a relationship
• 43:04and I I started to struggle.
• 43:06And you know, it was a time that
• 43:09I really started to question,
• 43:11you know, if you know,
• 43:12I wanted to go on, you know,
• 43:14with the project and you know
• 43:17that Elmo that you saw earlier,
• 43:20you know, went from,
• 43:22you know,
• 43:22being excited about this project
• 43:26to just being out in the cold alone
• 43:30and like just wondering what is
• 43:33going on to eventually I'm like,
• 43:35you know what?
• 43:37Like I think I should just like,
• 43:38I think I should just burn this
• 43:41painted like no one is going to know,
• 43:43you know, I'm just going to take it
• 43:45out and throw it away, you know?
• 43:48And I mean who's going to know?
• 43:50You know, I'm,
• 43:51I'm just going to end this
• 43:52project right here.
• 43:53But you know,
• 43:55I thankfully had the support and
• 43:58the love of community of, you know,
• 44:01my Co fellows, of my family.
• 44:04And you know,
• 44:05one person in particular was
• 44:09just incredible at helping me
• 44:12get through this process in
• 44:15general. And it is my daughter
• 44:18who is right here who
• 44:31who would support me, you know,
• 44:33throughout the night,
• 44:35sometimes would refuse to go to bed
• 44:38or join me in the studio and help me,
• 44:42you know, get through this project.
• 44:44And, you know, I started to think
• 44:46about the example, you know,
• 44:48that I was showing for her as well
• 44:51that do I quit when the going gets
• 44:54rough or do I do I persevere, You know,
• 44:57do I show that you finish what you start,
• 45:00You know? And I just want to say
• 45:02a big thank you, Ariela,
• 45:04for going through this journey with me.
• 45:10So I was able to keep pushing on,
• 45:15you know, after this.
• 45:17And as I started to push this project
• 45:21forward, you know, I realized,
• 45:23you know, this was saying from Pablo
• 45:26Picasso about inspiration existing,
• 45:29but it has to find you working.
• 45:31And so I continued this process
• 45:34and the more I worked,
• 45:37the more things began to make
• 45:39sense and the more things,
• 45:42you know, started to come together.
• 45:43And then I started to see a pattern
• 45:46with how this painting was growing.
• 45:49And you know how it started to grow
• 45:52into like this apex and everything
• 45:57started to come together after
• 45:59that and I was able to, you know,
• 46:03push through.
• 46:04I started to get this new direction
• 46:08of you know how this entire painting
• 46:11was going to come together and it was,
• 46:15it was wonderful.
• 46:16You know at this point in the
• 46:19creative process I was at the this
• 46:21might be OK you know part of the of
• 46:24the whole process but I am happy to
• 46:27say that we you know with with the
• 46:30support and you know the the you know
• 46:35just encouragement from community.
• 46:37You know the the painting is able
• 46:40to be here today and it is done
• 46:43and you know I look forward to
• 46:47unveiling it in a few minutes but
• 46:50I I wanna I wanna end you know by
• 46:54saying you know the the process of
• 46:57creation is one that is probably
• 47:00the closest thing we have to magic.
• 47:03It's you know seeing something in your
• 47:06head and being able to bring it to life.
• 47:10And you know I think it is you
• 47:12know reflection of the you know,
• 47:14ultimate creator.
• 47:16You know God,
• 47:17who you know is the ultimate artist
• 47:21and you know who has created,
• 47:24you know, every single person
• 47:26just beautifully and you know,
• 47:28wonderfully.
• 47:29And it was very interesting that
• 47:33at the at the end of the painting,
• 47:37I noticed that the inscription of God
• 47:42was right at the center of the entire
• 47:46painting and it was not planned out.
• 47:49It was completely random.
• 47:51And I thought that was incredibly powerful.
• 47:54And you know it it, you know,
• 47:57just draws, you know the the entire
• 48:00piece together and you know,
• 48:03lets us know that we we are,
• 48:05you know,
• 48:06in a in a special time and you
• 48:09know we we all sort of reflect
• 48:12this essence of creativity.
• 48:15So thank you all.
• 48:17And I look forward to showing this
• 48:20painting upstairs. And thank you.
• 48:47Wait a minute.
• 48:47You haven't seen the painting.
• 48:48Maybe you'll be disappointed.
• 48:51I want to. Ari. Ari Ritvo.
• 48:54Hopefully you can hear me.
• 48:58Yes. Oh, good.
• 48:59Would you like to say something, Ari?
• 49:01We'd love to hear from you.
• 49:03First of all, I'm blown away.
• 49:06This is mesmerizing. Dr.
• 49:08Aya, thank you so much.
• 49:10I am so proud and pleased to
• 49:14have you as our fifth speaker.
• 49:16It's unbelievable.
• 49:17I I didn't expect to learn so much about art.
• 49:22I was particularly touched when you spoke
• 49:25about the layers and then the attachment,
• 49:28and I can't wait to read
• 49:30that whole entire article.
• 49:33You were such a perfect choice committee.
• 49:36Thank you so much for bringing
• 49:38Doctor IO to my attention.
• 49:41And, you know,
• 49:42I always used to say about
• 49:44being with Max and with Alan,
• 49:46but one of the most wonderful thing
• 49:49about being with those two individuals
• 49:52whom you speak in memoriam of today was
• 49:58that I always learned something from them.
• 50:01I didn't expect to learn so,
• 50:02so much about art.
• 50:05I I paint, I have an art collection.
• 50:07I'm nowhere near your level,
• 50:10but I've learned so much.
• 50:13The process you described also reminded me
• 50:16very much of Max's process with poetry.
• 50:20The many, many nights that he was isolated,
• 50:23that he was alone,
• 50:25that he was determined.
• 50:26Because to him his legacy in the
• 50:28end and his healing would come from
• 50:31having a poetry book published.
• 50:34And I hear that same commitment
• 50:38in your voice.
• 50:39I was also incredibly touched as a
• 50:42mother to see your daughter Ariella
• 50:44and to see how it was a family project,
• 50:48a community project, the interviews,
• 50:50it.
• 50:51It just has so many levels and I
• 50:53don't want to take too much time.
• 50:56But you should also know that both
• 50:58Alan and Max had a a a tremendous
• 51:01fascination and interest in psychiatry.
• 51:05Max,
• 51:06before he became I'll,
• 51:08was very much considering becoming
• 51:10a psychiatrist.
• 51:11After he became I'll and was in treatment.
• 51:14And it's not a secret,
• 51:15'cause he wrote about it with
• 51:18Doctor Stan Posic.
• 51:19He then wanted to become an
• 51:21analyst 'cause that seemed much
• 51:22cooler to him and more useful.
• 51:25And Alan was an analysis from
• 51:27the time I met him.
• 51:29He was 40 years old to the time a year
• 51:32before he died when he was almost 80.
• 51:34So thank you so much.
• 51:37I hope I get to meet you in person one day.
• 51:39It would be my great honor.
• 51:41And thank you everybody that was was in.
• 51:45And for everyone that helped
• 51:48choose this amazing,
• 51:50phenomenal person to present today.
• 51:54I'm really touched.
• 51:56Thank you.
• 52:05Thank you, Ari. I'm,
• 52:06I'm going to get get off the stage,
• 52:08but if there are any questions for
• 52:10IO and then in 5 minutes or so,
• 52:12we're going to walk up. So please IO,
• 52:16thank you.
• 52:19Questions.
• 52:25What happens if you make a mistake
• 52:30and you're like that was a mistake,
• 52:32What do you do? How do you
• 52:34know and what do you do? You
• 52:36know the the good thing about
• 52:38being an artist is only you
• 52:40know where the mistake is.
• 52:44So a lot of times mistakes, you know,
• 52:48we call them happy accidents.
• 52:50You know, a lot of times mistakes
• 52:52can actually lead to new ways of like
• 52:56painting or new ways of seeing things.
• 53:01I think another benefit to all paint
• 53:04is that oil takes longer to dry.
• 53:07So you sort of have a bigger
• 53:10window to make a change, you know,
• 53:12if you do make a mistake.
• 53:14So that's that's one benefit
• 53:17to to all paint in Yeah great
• 53:25answer
• 53:28that was that was amazing.
• 53:30It really as I already said it
• 53:32really wasn't as I felt in another
• 53:34zone and I I was just wondering
• 53:37from the artist perspective how much
• 53:40do you know you got it the way you
• 53:44wanted whatever right means versus
• 53:47needing outside confirmation of that.
• 53:49As an artist, I always wondered that do you,
• 53:50do you do you need or depend on
• 53:55people to see it and react to it and
• 53:58tell you you're great what you are
• 54:01or is it just an internal thing?
• 54:03I'm just curious about
• 54:05that. That's a that's a wonderful
• 54:08question I think you know for for
• 54:12an artist you know perfection is
• 54:15always you know this thing that
• 54:17you continue to chase you know.
• 54:20But I think as you know artists you
• 54:22know grow you know in their art.
• 54:24You know they realize that there's
• 54:27no perfection And you you know your,
• 54:31you know duty is just to show up in
• 54:35the most complete way that you can and
• 54:39and you know just give in your 100%.
• 54:42And I think of that in itself as the
• 54:45satisfaction knowing that you gave your all.
• 54:49And even if you know you don't
• 54:52get the reception or the critical
• 54:55acclaim that you were expecting,
• 54:59you can at least take that and you know,
• 55:02know that you gave,
• 55:04you gave it everything that you had.
• 55:06And that in itself is is the satisfaction.
• 55:13Jose.
• 55:15Hello, I'm Jose. I'm one of the Co fellows
• 55:18with along with IO and that's my leg.
• 55:25So I was blessed and honored enough
• 55:28to be featured in the painting and
• 55:30be involved with IO throughout the
• 55:32process of making it. You know it.
• 55:34It's funny how well he carries the burden
• 55:37of of making such a beautiful piece
• 55:39of art and the symbolism behind it.
• 55:42And so it's it's incredibly touching
• 55:44to see the finished product and and
• 55:46how how wonderful it came together.
• 55:48And also I I'm honoured to be
• 55:50featured in it because it it did
• 55:52reflect a very pivotal moment in
• 55:54my life that was legacy defining.
• 55:56And I think everybody in the painting
• 55:58could kind of say the same thing.
• 56:01Not to, you know,
• 56:02trope on the pandemic,
• 56:02but this was the pandemic times and
• 56:05it was an incredibly incredible
• 56:07transformational moment for I think the
• 56:10world and for for us to be plastered on
• 56:13on in oil through layers that really
• 56:16encompass everything that we went
• 56:18through in order to be there for our
• 56:19patients and all and and our families.
• 56:21So thank you, IO.
• 56:24Thank you, Jose.
• 56:29One more.
• 56:31Yeah, this was fantastic.
• 56:32Thank you for doing it.
• 56:33So, but my question for you is just,
• 56:35I'm thinking about coming from
• 56:37a country like Nigeria,
• 56:38where at least a little while
• 56:40ago now, it's different,
• 56:41art wasn't quite encouraged.
• 56:44How did you have the courage to
• 56:46pursue this passion?
• 56:47And what did your parents
• 56:48do to help you a lot? Because if
• 56:50you're not a doctor, lawyer. Oh
• 56:52my God, that's a wonderful
• 56:54question. You know,
• 56:56so how did you have
• 56:57the courage to actually pursue this passion?
• 57:00You know, I didn't want to put
• 57:01my mom on blast, but, you know,
• 57:04since you brought this up,
• 57:05it was, it was very challenging
• 57:08growing up in Nigeria and,
• 57:12you know, deciding that, you know,
• 57:13I wanted to be an artist. And it was,
• 57:17it was unfortunately not encouraged.
• 57:20It was very much discouraged.
• 57:22And you know, I think you know,
• 57:25it is, you know,
• 57:26one of the biggest, you know,
• 57:29achievements you know of my life to
• 57:33be able to hold on to this dream of
• 57:37of being an artist and you know,
• 57:40taking this dream to adulthood,
• 57:43you know, because you know,
• 57:44I I believe that everyone is,
• 57:47you know, creative, you know,
• 57:49creative in their own way.
• 57:50You know, it doesn't have to be paint.
• 57:53It can be sewing, it can be music,
• 57:56you know, it can be construction,
• 57:59architecture, you know,
• 58:01everyone has you know that
• 58:03creativity and the real challenge
• 58:05is letting that creativity continue
• 58:07to grow and you know be displayed.
• 58:10So it was, it was challenging.
• 58:12And I think, you know,
• 58:14being able to experience different cultures,
• 58:17you know, I lived in Ukraine,
• 58:20I lived in Russia, I lived in,
• 58:21you know, so many places.
• 58:23Being being able to experience
• 58:25different cultures and see different
• 58:27perspectives really helped to keep,
• 58:29you know, that dream, you know, alive.
• 58:32And yeah, I'm thankful to be here today.
• 58:43OK. So if you want to see what
• 58:45you were all clapping for,
• 58:47let's go outside.
• 58:47Help yourself If you want anything to eat.
• 58:49And we're going just one floor up.
• 58:51We're going to continue podcasting
• 58:52or whatever the word is for this.
• 58:54Thank you, Kieran.
• 58:56And let's go see this painting. Oh,
• 59:00would you
• 59:08know what? I thank you. OK, that's
• 59:15great. OK, so IO has looked just like
• 59:17she looks at art and she looks at this
• 59:20blue and that blue. She looks
• 59:22at the thesis of the proceedings for the
• 59:25unveiling of the portrait. Correct. Yes.
• 59:32You have to.
• 59:33Individuals are gonna be doing something.
• 59:35Absolutely. Absolutely.
• 59:36I have my wonderful family here,
• 59:40my daughter, my wonderful.
• 59:43Then you came on as my mother
• 59:47help my sister-in-law.
• 59:49I'm here, my brother back
• 59:52there and I also have you guys,
• 59:54my colleagues, friends
• 59:59and you know, I am incredibly
• 01:00:02excited to unveil this.
• 01:00:04I know you guys are busy,
• 01:00:05so we'll try to do this quickly
• 01:00:08and I will have Ariella and Cam on.
• 01:00:13Do the honor of unveiling
• 01:00:15this painting for me.
• 01:00:18So you guys ready?
• 01:00:20Are you ready here?
• 01:00:21OK, I will unveil it a
• 01:00:24little bit and then mute.
• 01:00:46They don't want anyone to see,
• 01:01:03all right. I mean,
• 01:01:03we can't take it anyway, All
• 01:01:07right. So will you guys do me
• 01:01:12the honour of coding this off?
• 01:01:16OK guys, go for it.
• 01:01:22There
• 01:01:29you go.
• 01:01:47I just want one thing out and
• 01:01:48then I'll get out of the way. You
• 01:01:50start some of the foundational
• 01:01:52aspects of child psychiatry,
• 01:01:54and there's one here that says Maggie's
• 01:01:58American Dream by James P Comer.
• 01:02:01And if you look at this portrait,
• 01:02:03you will see Maggie's American by James,
• 01:02:15OK?