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Dr. Michael J. DiBartolomeis
When I was old enough to run away from home, I spent countless hours exploring the back woods, local ponds, and vacant land of suburban Massachusetts -- always returning in time for dinner. As a young adult in the 1970s and 80s, I took to backpacking through majestic landscapes, from the Appalachian Mountains to the Rockies and Sierras. During those years, I found myself rendering pictures of natural and architectural landmarks in ink and watercolor, certain that I was destined to become an architect.However, my coming-of-age coincided with a grim realization: our industrial activities were actively polluting the Earth. At the time, nothing infuriated me more than finding trash, beer cans, and abandoned gear spewed along a backcountry trail twenty-five miles from the nearest town. It was a turning point. I chose to study environmental toxicology with the hope of doing my part to protect the planet.For the next four decades, I walked a path defined by a duality of vision: the rigid, empirical lens of a scientist and the fluid, emotive eye of an artist. Although I abandoned the idea of a career in architecture, the impulse to build and create -- to bridge the gap between science and art -- never left me. Instead, it manifested in two parallel careers that, while seemingly disparate, became deeply symbiotic.As a toxicologist, researcher, and public health official, my daily work was rooted in data, regulation, and the weight of expert testimony. It was a world of precision, but also one of inherent control and professional oppression. Art became my essential counterbalance. Where the workplace demanded strict conformity to protocol, the canvas offered absolute freedom. Painting and photography were not merely hobbies; they were necessary acts of defiance and liberation. In fact, while navigating the hallways and political backrooms of public health, I quietly went back to school to pursue a fine arts degree -- a creative double life I hid entirely from my scientific colleagues.Today, my original art and photographs reflect a deeply personal reality, shaped by the weight and wonder of these life events. Simply stated, my artwork is the visual manifestation of a lifetime of private thoughts, memories, and the enduring friction between two distinct worlds.
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