Health sciences employee, student artwork on display at The James

On the first floor of The James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute at The Ohio State University, visitors will find the hospital’s art gallery. Exhibitions rotate through every eight weeks. Once a year, a special show is on display: “Medicine and the Arts.”

Wrapping up on May 22, the exhibition presents works of art from students, faculty, residents and staff at the university’s seven health sciences colleges and The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. 

The show begins as part of a larger collection in Hamilton Hall, which accepts works from anyone in those groups. Then the works are reviewed by the James Art Program Strategic Steering Committee, said Peggy Kohler, who manages the performing and visual arts programs at The James. 

In addition to skill, Kohler said, the group looks for uplifting artworks.

“We want people to come and have a little respite in the gallery,” she said. “We want them to have something interesting to look at, something that will take them somewhere else or buoy their spirits or just give them a break.”

Jessica Wojtasek, a senior user experience designer with the hospital’s digital marketing and communications team, has participated in the show twice. Wojtasek, who paints professionally and has shown her work across the city, captures scenes from around Columbus. This year’s James exhibition shows five of her pieces, including a painting of the iconic Tee Jay’s Country Place sign on Columbus’ north side. 

“I want people to feel an attachment to the city we’re in,” she said. “We experience it every day, whether it’s raining or it’s a beautiful spring day. I want viewers to feel a connection to this place.”

Wojtasek’s department was excited to see her works included in the exhibition, she said. She has enjoyed sharing her paintings with them.

“Getting to do this with my co-workers has been fun,” she said. “Ohio State is so supportive of their employees and our interests. It’s a fun way to connect with everyone beyond our day-to-day work.”

Third-year medical student Natalie Brillhart is also participating for the second year and has also found the exhibition to be a positive experience. She received her bachelor’s degree from Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee. Since she graduated, Belmont has begun its own medical graduate program; Natalie had feedback to share with them.

“I told them about this show,” she said. “It’s been one of my favorite experiences throughout medical school. I’ve been trying to make sure that other schools have this, too, because I’ve loved it.

Brillhart has experience as a patient, as well. She has had two major surgeries, one as a child and one three years ago. Her piece in this year’s exhibition is a reflection on the more recent procedure, the removal of part of her thyroid gland.

“My recovery was rougher than I anticipated – it took a long time for my energy to return,” she said. “I created a painting that shares my story as well as my ability, as a future doctor, to empathize with patients. I’ve been here before. There’s a lot to this journey, even after your incisions have healed and you walk away.”

Brillhart has worried about abandoning her art to pursue medicine. Opportunities like this have shown her she doesn’t have to do that, she said. 

“The further I get in my career, the less separate the two are,” she said. “I’ve noticed that I’ve become more creative in how I study, which helps me grow. That’s me as a student: the arts and the medicine, together. Just like our patients, who want to be seen as a whole human being, not just someone who’s sick.”

Brillhart hopes that, if nothing else, her artwork helps someone else express themselves in whatever way is comfortable for them.

 “I cannot sing to save my life,” she said, “but some songs shake me to my core. So if I can create something that helps someone else heal – that’s my biggest hope.”