Art, Well-Being, and Medicine

About the Workshops

Our Art, Well-Being, and Medicine workshops help medical students and healthcare professionals develop a more empathetic and humanistic approach to patient care. Held in the Barnes galleries, sessions led by our expert instructors encourage close looking, dialogue, and reflection focused on great works of art. Participants become more perceptually attuned and better listeners, observers, and communicators—all skills essential for humane and effective medical care and sound health policy.

The Barnes is an ideal setting for discussion. Our galleries feature works of art from around the globe displayed in unusual juxtapositions, creating an environment that is both stimulating and intimate. The connection between medicine and art is fundamental to the Barnes’s history: our founder, Dr. Albert C. Barnes, earned a medical degree at the University of Pennsylvania before achieving professional success in pharmaceuticals. He later dedicated his life to education through the arts, amassing a world-class collection and developing a distinctive approach to teaching rooted in careful observation. These workshops draw heavily on that approach.

Our workshops cover a range of topics designed to hone skills essential to clinical practice. (All workshops are supported by relevant literature from peer-reviewed journals and texts.)

Workshop topics:

• Introduction to Art, Well-Being, and Medicine
• Close Looking
• Critical Thinking
• Objective Observation
• Clear Communication
• Collaborative Problem Solving
• Navigating Ambiguity
• Building Empathy
• Foregrounding Diversity and Inclusion

Who are these workshops for?
Our workshops are appropriate for, but not limited to, medical and nursing students, medical residents and faculty, practicing physicians and their staff, professionals in the pharmaceutical field, and those interested in learning more about the intersection of medicine and the humanities.

Current participants include:
Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine
Wills Eye Hospital, Jefferson Health
St. Luke’s Medicine, Department of Dermatology
Penn Medicine Neurocritical Care
Drexel University, Physician Assistant Program
Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey
Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania
Community College of Philadelphia Nursing
ARTZ Philadelphia

Student testimonials:
“(The program) really forced me to slow down and not jump to conclusions. The process of effectively gathering objective information, presenting that information, and even drawing conclusions from that information is critical in medicine. This program helped me evaluate myself in each of these areas, and I had fun doing it.”

“The experience was fluid and inclusive. The openness of the discussion and encouragement of all members to share was refreshing and promoted listening and reflection.”

Options and Pricing

Single 2-hour gallery workshop

• Choose your topic
• Maximum of 20 participants
• Cost: $1,500

Series of 2-hour gallery workshops

• Any combination of topics
• Maximum of 20 participants
• Cost: $1,300 per workshop

Half-day gallery workshop (3 hours)

• Choose your topic
• Maximum of 20 participants
• Cost: $2,000

Full-day gallery workshop (6 hours)

• Topics selected by instructor
• Minimum of 5 participants; maximum of 20
• Cost: $3,500

Other options available on consultation. Private meetings rooms are available.

To receive more information or schedule your workshop, please complete this request form, and we’ll contact you soon.

Request a Workshop

Sponsor

Ongoing support for our Art, Well-Being, and Medicine program is provided by the Dr. Sheldon Weintraub Fund.