Art by Bryan K. Ward, M.D.

In the Fall 2022 issue of Hearing Health magazine we include art by Bryan K. Ward, M.D., a 2020 Emerging Research Grants scientist who is an associate professor of otolaryngology–head and neck surgery at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

“I first got interested in art in middle school,” Ward says. “My grandmother was a painter and encouraged me to draw and paint. I took art throughout high school, even taking AP Art and building a portfolio. It was a great way to relax, and I enjoyed learning that emotion could be expressed almost as a filter when you create a representation of something. I fell in love with watercolor; I found it relaxing and I could do it anywhere. I find that sometimes the same images are repeated in the medical literature, and sometimes they aren’t anatomically correct, or don’t emphasize the anatomy best for a particular article. So I started trying to create my own images to make different points. Currently, about half of my papers or book chapters have some artwork. During COVID, I did a few other random pieces while stuck at home. I actually just sent these to a family friend who was interested, so I have some compilations. Doing the art is fun for me! I really never thought the art would get anyone's attention so that's been fun, too.”