Doctor Trades Stethoscope for Paintbrush in Fitler Square
After years of treating patients, Pia De Girolamo picked up a paintbrush and never looked back, finding inspiration along the Schuylkill and around the world.
By Stacia Friedman
From infectious disease specialist to acclaimed painter, Fitler Square resident Pia De Girolamo has taken an extraordinary path to artistic success.
After closing her medical practice in 2003 to pursue her "first love," De Girolamo has built an impressive body of work capturing the many moods of the Schuylkill, landscapes in Rome, and scenes from as far as the Arctic.
Moving seamlessly from realism to abstraction, her paintings now appear in museums in Rome and local institutions like Jefferson Hospital. De Girolamo's journey to becoming one of Fitler Square's notable artists has had some surprising twists and turns.
"I grew up in Forest Hills, NY and majored in Art History with a concentration in Architecture at Barnard and Columbia," said De Girolamo. "Then I got my MD degree at Rochester University and did a residency in Internal Medicine at Temple which brought me to Philadelphia." Next, De Girolamo entered an Infectious Disease Program at Penn.
While her medical studies were in keeping with the tradition of Philadelphia artist Thomas Eakins, known for his painting of The Gross Clinic, it did not permit time to devote to her love of painting. But it did ignite her affection for Fitler Square. "I lived at 22nd and Spruce for several years as an undergrad and when I got married, my husband and I would often wander around the neighborhood and always gravitate to Fitler Square. We always said that if we ever bought a house, it would be a little row home in Fitler Square."
From Medicine to Masterpieces
That dream didn't come true until three years ago when the De Girolamos purchased a second home at 22nd and Naudain. Their purpose? "My husband is a heart transplant cardiologist on call at Penn and he was tired of his long commute from Horsham. Now he can walk there," she said.
"We're here forty percent of the time and we love walking to local restaurants. Our next door neighbors own Seafood Unlimited. We also enjoy dining at Ambrosia, Illata and Cafe Lutecia."
Local views have inspired paintings. "I take photos when I'm here and do sketches which become the basis for paintings when I am back at my home studio in Horsham," she said. She also walks her Cardigan Welsh Corgie, Jack, in Fitler Square. "He's got a big bushy tail and appears in some of my paintings. People always stop us to chat."
So how did a doctor with a husband, two children and a dog make the leap to painting full time? "I didn't start painting until 2001, with the encouragement of my sister and brother-in-law, both of whom are artists," she said. By then, De Girolamo was juggling a private practice in Infectious Disease and raising two sons. Still, she found time to attend painting workshops at the Norristown Arts Building, studying with artist Tim Hawksworth, as well as printmaking workshops at Main Line Art Center.
"Two years later, I closed my medical practice and came back to my first love, painting," she said. "It's been such a rich, healing experience."
Capturing Schuylkill's Soul
Working primarily in acrylic on canvas, De Girolamo's work reflects her travels, passions and everyday life. "Along the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia, there is a lively interplay of form and line between the old and new buildings and the bridges and roadways," she said.
Before the pandemic, she painted landscapes based on her travel to Patagonia, Iceland and Italy. "These paintings echo the American modernist tradition as embodied by artists such as Milton Avery, Arthur Dove and Georgia O'Keeffe," she said. And yet, while her work may be inspired by these artists, it remains purely her own and is in high demand.
During the pandemic, Pia painted a series of representational acrylic paintings based on a friend's images of flowers on her Instagram site. "In my series, botanical forms convey emotions, such as loss, a meditative state and exuberance."
"Sometimes, I make several paintings of the same scene, asking what happens if I change up the palette or focus on a different part of the scene," she said. An example would be her various renditions of the view across the Schuylkill. "As a former art history major with a concentration in architecture, I appreciate the contrasts between the historic buildings and the modern." Now that she's in the City, De Girolamo takes advantage of drawing classes at the Sketch Club on Camac Street.
From Gallery Walls to Museum Halls
De Girolamo isn't afraid to change her style. Her Philadelphia paintings have an architectural yet playful quality, while her cityscapes of Rome are purely abstract. While some of her figurative paintings are devoid of features, her portraits lean back into contemporary realism.
Since her first solo show in 2007, De Girolamo has had 15 solo shows and won numerous awards. Her paintings are in the collection of the Musei Di San Salvatore in Rome and in several area corporate offices, including Jefferson Hospital.
Pia De Girolamo's most recent show was at Cerulean Arts Gallery, 1355 Ridge Avenue. This series of paintings, developed over the last year, features vignettes of urban architecture and bridges with a particular interest in contrasts between old and new constructions.
