Art@Countway Opening Reception: Do You See Me?

You are warmly invited to celebrate the opening of Do You See Me? Paintings of Postpartum Trauma and Healing by physician-artist S. Abbas Shobeiri, the <a href="https://countway.info/see">newest exhibition</a> in Countway Library’s Art@Countway gallery. Presented in partnership with GlobalMentalHealth@Harvard, the exhibition features fifteen powerful paintings exploring the emotional and psychological realities of postpartum trauma and recovery. Through art and storytelling, the exhibition gives visibility to experiences that are often difficult to express, while encouraging greater awareness and conversation around maternal mental health.  Join us for an evening featuring remarks by the artist, a guided tour of the exhibition, and light refreshments.  Tuesday, September 8 5:30–7:00 p.m. Countway Library RSVP: <a href="https://countway.info/seeopening">countway.info/seeopening</a> All are welcome!

Countway Library

Book Launch: Body, Soul, and Comics

This is a hybrid event. Register to attend at <a href="countway.info/soul">countway.info/soul</a>. About the Event Join Countway Library and the MCPHS Center for Health Humanities for the official launch of&nbsp;A. David Lewis' newest book,&nbsp;Body, Soul, and Comics: Graphic Religion and Graphic Medicine!&nbsp;Q&amp;A, book sales, and book signing to follow.&nbsp;Light refreshments will be provided.&nbsp; Briana Martino, Chair of Department of Communications, Simmons University and co-editor of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.psupress.org/books/titles/978-0-271-10035-7.html">Keywords/Keyimages in Graphic Medicine</a>&nbsp;will serve as moderator for the discussion. About the Book An exploration of how comics illuminate medicine, religion, and identity <a href="https://www.upress.state.ms.us/Books/B/Body-Soul-and-Comics">Body, Soul, and Comics: Graphic Religion and Graphic Medicine</a>&nbsp;follows A. David Lewis's unique scholarly journey through graphic religion and graphic medicine, exploring how comics intersect with healthcare, clinical practice, spirituality, patient experience, and belief. Drawing on more than two decades of academic research, Lewis reframes both fields through the distinct narrative and visual language of comics. Though often seen as opposites—spiritual versus scientific—religion and medicine share concerns with selfhood, community, personal well-being, and transformation. Through comics, Lewis reveals these shared concerns and examines how selfhood, identity, and embodiment emerge through visual storytelling. Blending scholarship with autobiography, Lewis weaves personal moments—a religious conversion, experiences with anxiety, and academic work within a healthcare setting—into a broader analysis of representation and meaning in comic books. His account resists the traditional divide between theory and lived experience, grounding abstract ideas in the personal and the visual. About the Author&nbsp; A. David Lewis is an associate professor of English and health humanities at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS) and the author of&nbsp;Body, Soul &amp; Comics&nbsp;(May 15, University of Mississippi Press). An Eisner Award nominee and judge, he is also the coeditor of&nbsp;Graven Images: Religion in Comic Books and Novels&nbsp;and&nbsp;Muslim Superheroes: Comics, Islam, and Representation. A founder of library collections at both Boston University and MCPHS, Lewis's teaching and research focus on representations of cancer and loneliness in comic books and graphic novels. He is the inaugural coeditor of&nbsp;Graphic Medicine Review&nbsp;and the acclaimed author of comics including&nbsp;The Lone and Level Sands&nbsp;and the centennial comics adaptation of Kahlil Gibran's&nbsp;The Prophet.

Countway Library, Harvard Medical School

ARTSAWONDER: Healing the Community and Peacebuilding Through the Arts

Join us for an inspiring afternoon of music and conversation as we welcome musician, songwriter and community activist Tommy Sands to perform and speak about his experience of healing communities through conflict resolution and music.&nbsp;He will be joined by a panel of Irish artists and writers who will share their perspectives on embracing the arts in challenging times.&nbsp;&nbsp; Register to attend: <a href="https://countway.info/wonder">countway.info/wonder</a> Program: 4:00 COUNTWAY CONCERT&nbsp;(L1 Atrium) A special concert of Irish music featuring Tommy Sands, Bruce Victor, Lisa Wong, and&nbsp;musicians from HMS 5:30 DINNER&nbsp;(Lahey Room, 5th Floor) 6:00 PANEL DISCUSSION&nbsp;(Lahey Room, 5th Floor)<ul><li>Guy Beiner, historian and writer</li><li>Kieran Jordan, dancer, movement teacher, Polarity Practitioner</li><li>Michael MacDonald, trauma-informed transformative storytelling</li><li>Tommy Sands, singer-songwriter, community activist</li><li>Dr. Bruce Victor, psychiatrist, guitarist</li><li>Dr. Lisa Wong, co-director of the Arts and Humanities Initiative at Harvard Medical School (Moderator)</li></ul>Panelists:&nbsp; <img src="https://d2jv02qf7xgjwx.cloudfront.net/accounts/141080/images/Guy_Beiner.jpg">Guy Beiner &nbsp;is the Sullivan Chair of Irish Studies at Boston College. He specializes in the historical study of remembering and forgetting and his publications include the prize-winning books Remembering the Year of the French: Irish Folk History and Social Memory (University of Wisconsin Press), Forgetful Remembrance: Social Forgetting and Vernacular Historiography of a Rebellion in Ulster (Oxford University Press), and the edited volume&nbsp;Pandemic Re-Awakenings: The Forgotten and Unforgotten ‘Spanish’ Flu of 1918–1919 (Oxford University Press). &nbsp; <img src="https://d2jv02qf7xgjwx.cloudfront.net/accounts/141080/images/Kieran_Jordan.png">Kieran Jordan, MA, BCPP, is a dancer, movement teacher, and Board Certified Polarity Practitioner. Whether she is working in dance, or energy healing, her work creates opportunities for embodiment, connection, and soul-expression. Named “Boston’s first lady of contemporary Irish dance” (Boston Globe), Kieran pioneered the teaching of sean-nós (old style) and “non-competitive” Irish dance for adults in Boston for more than two decades. Winner of two prestigious Massachusetts Artist Fellowships, Kieran holds an MA from the University of Limerick, Ireland, and a BA from Boston College. Her own journey through illness and healing led her to study Polarity Therapy, which she now practices in Dorchester, Massachusetts and Kennebunk, Maine. &nbsp; <img src="https://d2jv02qf7xgjwx.cloudfront.net/accounts/141080/images/Michael_MacDonald.png">Michael Patrick MacDonald&nbsp;&nbsp;is the author of the New York Times Bestselling memoir,<a href="https://bookshop.org/p/books/all-souls-a-family-story-from-southie-michael-patrick-macdonald/7285688?ean=9780807072134"> All Souls: A Family Story From Southie</a> and the acclaimed<a href="https://bookshop.org/p/books/easter-rising-an-irish-american-coming-up-from-under-michael-patrick-macdonald/11873358?ean=9780618918638"> Easter Rising: A Memoir of Roots and Rebellion</a>. Both are frequent selections for Campus Reads and First-Year Experience programs at high schools and universities throughout the U.S. He has been a guest speaker at over 300 campuses. After losing four siblings and seeing his generation decimated by poverty, crime, addiction, and incarceration. MacDonald became a leading Boston organizer, helping to launch many anti violence initiatives, including gun-buyback programs and support networks for survivors. He continues to work with survivor families, educators, and organizers from Boston to Belfast using his trauma-informed transformative storytelling curriculum, The Rest of the Story. In 2019 he received a Fulbright U.S. Scholar Award to teach at Queens University, Belfast. He is Professor of the Practice in Northeastern University’s Honors Program, teaching writing and social justice issues, and at Harvard Summer School where he teaches about restorative and&nbsp;transformative justice movement &nbsp; <img src="https://d2jv02qf7xgjwx.cloudfront.net/accounts/141080/images/Tommy_Sands.png"> Tommy Sands is a renowned folk singer, songwriter, and community activist from Northern Ireland. Known internationally for weaving storytelling with music, Sands will offer an evening that blends culture, history, and reflection. Drawing on decades of work through the Northern Ireland peace process, Sands will share personal stories of how music became a bridge between divided communities. From village halls and cross-community gatherings to international stages, his songs have helped create spaces where people could meet beyond political and religious divisions. Through music and conversation, he will explore how artists and ordinary citizens contributed to building trust during difficult years. The event promises to be more than a traditional lecture. Students at the Harvard Kennedy School will have the opportunity to hear the songs that travelled through Northern Ireland during times of tension and hope, and to reflect on the role culture can play in peacebuilding. In an evening that connects history, diplomacy, and music, Tommy Sands will offer a powerful reminder that sometimes a song can open a path toward understanding where politics alone cannot. &nbsp; <img src="https://d2jv02qf7xgjwx.cloudfront.net/accounts/141080/images/Bruce_Victor.png">Dr. Bruce Victor currently serves as the Director of Programmes for the Artsahealing Division of Artsawonder, a charitable organization started by Tommy Sands and Catherine Besconds-Sands dedicated to innovative approaches to conflict resolution and peacebuilding (<a href="http://www.artsawonder.com">www.artsawonder.com</a>). In 2024, Bruce became the Global Academic Liaison for Music Mends Minds (<a href="http://www.musicmendsminds.org">www.musicmendsminds.org</a>) and chaired a committee that created a 10-week academic curriculum on “Music and Conflict Resolution and Peacebuilding” to be taught at UCLA. He was formerly Director of Psychiatric Research and Chief of Biological Psychiatry at the California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco, California and a Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at the School of Medicine at the University of California at San Francisco. He was a Visiting Scholar at the University of Cambridge where he studied the use of music in settings of both individual and social healing. Bruce and his wife, Marla Fibish play together as Noctambule (<a href="http://www.noctambulemusic.com">www.noctambulemusic.com</a>). With Marla on mandolin and mandola, and Bruce on guitar and cittern, they play both traditional and original acoustic music. They have produced four albums and have toured throughout the United States and Ireland. &nbsp; <img src="https://d2jv02qf7xgjwx.cloudfront.net/accounts/141080/images/Lisa_Wong_.png">Dr. Lisa Wong is an assistant professor of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School, a pediatrician at Milton Pediatric Associates and co-director of the Arts and Humanities Initiative at HMS dedicated to the integration of the arts and sciences. She served as president of the Longwood Symphony Orchestra for 21 years, where she co-designed the "Healing Art of Music Program." During the Covid-19 pandemic, she helped create Boston Hope Music, offering virtual music performances to patients and healthcare workers. Dr. Wong teaches interdisciplinary courses on creativity, arts, music, health, and education at Harvard College and co-leads a museum-based medical education fellowship through Harvard Macy institute. An arts education advocate, Lisa&nbsp;serves on the boards of Conservatory Lab Charter School, A Far Cry ensemble, and the Boston Public School Arts Expansion initiative. Nationally, she contributed to the NASEM committee on arts in STEMM education and serves on the Neuroarts Blueprint scientific committee. She lives in Newton Massachusetts and is the author of Scales to Scalpels: Doctors Who Practice the Healing Arts of Music and Medicine. <img src="https://d2jv02qf7xgjwx.cloudfront.net/accounts/240925/images/artsawonder2.jpg">Artsawonder/Artsahealing The quiet power of music came to prominence, very publicly during the Good Friday Agreement in Northern Ireland in 1998 when Peace Talks seemed to be faltering. Musicians from both sides of the warring communities arrived. “Carry on”, was the simple chorus of a quickly composed Tommy Sands’ song, and politicians and paramilitaries were suddenly singing along. Artsawonder is the name of the organisation that sprang from such moments.&nbsp;

Wait Time Is Over for Eisner's "Waiting-Room Willie"

Celebrate Will Eisner Week! More than 50 years ago, Will Eisner’s American Visuals Studio produced “<a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__lcamtuf.coredump.cx_communism_The-2520Sad-2520Case-2520of-2520Waiting-2DRoom-2520Willie_&amp;d=DwMFaQ&amp;c=WO-RGvefibhHBZq3fL85hQ&amp;r=cxKTcu_-1VSwgdsXnd27E6Nm4ayXD6crCzZxzewa4kA&amp;m=4igle7h_BuTnVh5BGQyYHfMq3G01p8KEjWgqI332ODzw65jMVV949txeJxmK8kJQ&amp;s=Na_unlVF9Uba5yqoECUb83LkP_bOrzltYJ5aEkQQXdY&amp;e=">The Sad Case of Waiting-Room Willie</a>” for the Committee on Public Medical Health Education of the Baltimore Medical Society. This fascinating case of public health advocacy has long gone unexamined, particularly in the modern context of American healthcare. The MCPHS University Center for Health Humanities and the Harvard Medical School's Countway Library are bringing a team of local experts to honor Eisner’s legacy while also addressing some of our contemporary Graphic Medicine questions that plague Willie. Panelists:&nbsp; Martha Gardner&nbsp;- Associate Professor of History and Social Sciences, MCPHS University A. David Lewis&nbsp;- Associate Professor of English and Health Humanities, MCPHS University Dan Mazur&nbsp;- Artist, Publisher;&nbsp;Will Eisner: A Comics Biography Tavon Mei&nbsp;- Graphic Medicine Club representative, Boston University Matthew Noe&nbsp;- Lead Collection and Knowledge Management Librarian, Harvard Medical School's Countway Library (Moderator)

Opening Reception and Portrait Unveiling: Belonging Beyond the Diagnosis

Kick off Rare Disease Month with a special opening reception co-hosted by the HMS <a href="https://undiagnosed.hms.harvard.edu/">Undiagnosed Diseases Network</a> and Countway Library! This celebratory event marks the grand opening of the Belonging Beyond the Diagnosis exhibit, featuring nearly 40 portraits of children living with life-altering diseases, and includes the unveiling of the newest portrait added to the Beyond the Diagnosis collection. Join us to explore the powerful intersection of art and rare disease awareness. The portraits, created by artists from all over the world, are on loan from <a href="https://www.beyondthediagnosis.org/">Beyond the Diagnosis</a>, a nonprofit organization which unites art and science to raise awareness for children living with life-altering diseases. We invite the Harvard ID community to visit the exhibit anytime the library building is open. Members of the public are welcome to visit the exhibit on Saturdays and Sundays during our <a href="https://countway.harvard.edu/about/hours">public access hours</a>. More information about the exhibit can be found at <a href="https://countway.info/beyond">countway.info/beyond</a>. Program:<ul><li>Welcome, Meredith Solomon, Countway Library</li><li>Paul Mazur, UDN</li><li>Patty Weltin, Beyond the Diagnosis</li><li>Cadogan Family remarks</li><li>Portrait Unveiling</li></ul>--- We are committed to making this event accessible to all participants. The space is wheelchair accessible, microphones will be used for speakers, and assistive listening devices are available for use. Please reach out to <a href="mailto:countwayoutreach@hms.harvard.edu">countwayoutreach@hms.harvard.edu</a> if you have any accessibility needs or questions.

Defining Graphic Medicine: Opening Panel for the NLM Traveling Exhibit "Graphic Medicine: Ill-Conceived and Well-Drawn!"

Over the next six weeks, Harvard's Countway Library will play host to the National Library of Medicine's traveling exhibit on comics in medicine, titled Graphic Medicine: Ill-Conceived and Well-Drawn!. Located on the first floor of the library near the Huntington Avenue entrance January 9 through February 17, this exhibit will be dedicated to the burgeoning field of graphic medicine. The exhibit will be accompanied by a series of graphic medicine-related events. Join us each week for a new opportunity to explore the role of comics in health!   Graphic medicine is a field of study, community of practice, and genre of comics that is commonly defined as the intersection of the medium of comics and the discourse of healthcare. Since Countway Library’s first graphic medicine acquisition in 2018, we have developed one of the <a href="https://harvard.us16.list-manage.com/track/click?u=cee2960e75238725586796f1b&amp;id=bad0f252a8&amp;e=32a967a749">largest circulating collections</a> related to graphic medicine in the world. Join us for an opening panel discussion that will help frame and explore the emergence of the field, the community, and the genre that we call graphic medicine. Our panelists, Cathy Leamy, A. David Lewis, and Joel Christian Gill, bring a wealth of experience not only in comics creation, but in the study and teaching of comics across a range of disciplines. The panel will include a moderated discussion led by Countway librarian Matthew Noe and audience Q&amp;A. This is a hybrid event; attend in person or tune in via Zoom. Registration required. Visit <a href="https://countway.info/gmpanel">countway.info/gmpanel</a> to save your spot!   About the Panelists: Joel Christian Gill, a noted cartoonist and historian, actively advocates for storytelling nationwide. He authored the Eisner Nominated graphic memoir, Fights: One Boy's Triumph Over Violence, hailed as one of 2020’s best graphic novels by The New York Times and winner of the 2021 Cartoonist Studio Prize. Gill also penned and illustrated the acclaimed graphic novel series, Strange Fruit and Tales of The Talented Tenth, highlighting figures like Bass Reeves, Bessie Stringfield, and Robert Smalls. He adapted Dr. Ibram Kendi's award-winning Stamped From the Beginning into a graphic novel, contributing further to the narrative against racism. Dedicated to building empathy and humanity through storytelling, Gill holds the inaugural Chair of Boston University’s CFA MFA in Visual Narrative, holding an MFA from Boston University and a BA from Roanoke College. Cathy Leamy is a Boston-based cartoonist and health communication specialist. She is known for using humor and plain language in health education, with health comics such as What the Hell?! Why is My Doctor So Late? and Diabetes is After Your Dick! When she’s not making comics, she works in healthcare IT as a content designer and UX writer. A. David Lewis is an Eisner Award nominee (2015) and judge (2023), as well as co-editor of both Graven Images: Religion in Comic Books and Graphic Novels and Muslim Superheroes: Comics, Islam, and Representation. A founder of library collections at both Boston University and MCPHS University, Dr. Lewis is currently program director for the MHS degree at the MCPHS University School of Arts and Sciences where his teaching and research focus on Graphic Medicine, specifically the depiction of cancer in comic books and graphic novels. In addition to serving as the inaugural co-editor of the Graphic Medicine Review journal, he is the acclaimed author of such comics as The Lone and Level Sands and The Prophet graphic novel adaptation. Matthew Noe is Lead Collection &amp; Knowledge Management Librarian at Harvard Medical School's Countway Library. He also teaches as a Part-Time Instructor at the University of Kentucky, School of Information. He is most well-known for work in comics librarianship, health sciences librarianship, and in particular, graphic medicine. Matthew was the 2021-2022 President of the American Library Association’s Graphic Novels and Comics Round Table and has been the Treasurer for the Graphic Medicine International Collective since 2019. He is currently serving a six-year term on the Worcester Public Library Board of Directors. In addition to numerous book chapters on collection management and graphic medicine, Matthew is a comics reviewer for both Booklist and his Diamond Bookshelf column, Noe's Comics Nook. You can often find him overcaffeinated, ranting about all manner of things on Twitter, or curled up with two dogs, a book, and not enough hands. --  Learn more about the NLM traveling exhibit Graphic Medicine: Ill-Conceived and Well-Drawn and other related events at <a href="https://countway.info/graphicmed">countway.info/graphicmed</a>.

S22: conversations

Wondering what to do in Boston? Places to eat? Free activities? Good for a group? Date night spot? Girls night out? The best things to do? Ask Joyraft!

Best places to go in Boston? Things to do? Places to eat?

Questions & answers about things to do in Boston

Recs 💬

Community recs 💬

S4: top picks

The most fun, cool and unique things to do in Boston. Can’t miss events, shows and experiences. Concerts, restaurants, bars, free things in Boston and beyond.

The most fun and cool events happening around Boston

Hot and new things to do in Boston

Hot & new

Hot & new 🔥

S11: happening this weekend

What to do in Boston this weekend? From festivals, concerts, performances, free events, screenings and more, Joyraft has the best things to do in Boston.

25+ things to do in Boston/Cambridge/Somerville this weekend

Things to do in Boston this weekend

This wknd

This weekend for you

S21: roundups

Our top picks: outdoor dining, free events, spring festivals, best bars, upcoming concerts, museum parties - the latest in and around Boston.  Slug: joyraft-top-picks-best-things-to-do-boston-ma

Top picks of the best things to do in and around Boston

Joyraft picks: Boston’s best things to do

Roundups ⭐️

Curated by Joyraft ⭐️

S28: calendar experiences

This week in Boston

This week in Boston 📆

This week 📆

S20: c+d experiences

Discover new, unique events and experiences happening in and around Boston. Perfect for date night, good for a group or with a friend. Be the first to know.

The newest events happening in and around Boston

The newest events on Joyraft

Just added

Just added to Joyraft

S16: editor picks

The most unique and can’t miss things coming up in Boston / Cambridge / Somerville and beyond. Festivals, food, drinks, fairs, concerts, art and free activities.

Unique and Can’t Miss Things to Do in Boston

Can’t-miss things to do in Boston 🚨

Can't-miss things to do 🚨

S2 (A): top experiences

The most popular things to do on Joyraft. Concerts, restaurants, bars, events, parties, openings, kid friendly, date ideas, free things in Boston and beyond.

Top 20 things to do in Boston

Top 20: Joyraft’s most popular

Top 20

Top 20 on Joyraft

S3 (A): trending experiences

Discover can’t miss events and things to do in Boston. The most fun, unique and cool events coming to the Boston area this spring and summer.

The hottest events happening in Boston

Trending events on Joyraft

Trending 📈

S19: interest based

Kid-friendly events in Boston

S18: interest based

Where to eat and drink in Boston? Joyraft has Boston’s newest bars, restaurants and specials. Drinks and pre fixe dinner menus. Cambridge & Somerville too.

Where

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