Aristide ‘Steven’ Pappas

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Art and Nature are two passions that have always been part of my life. I grew up in California and spent nearly every other day of my youth on the banks of the American River. I feel blessed to be able to say that some of my earliest friends were “wild” animals. Although I now live in San Francisco, I have nested in a magical oasis in the Presidio. I am able to witness the sunset and sunrise over the Bay and hear the ocean waves sing while I paint in my art studio. This is the greatest gift of Mother Nature and I want to share that with you in my paintings.

I was exposed to art during my first week of life. My mother, Terry Pappas, is not only a talented emergency room physician, but a magnificent artist as well. She is my creative inspiration. I still recall the feeling of disbelief when she told me that the California Governor’s Office presented an original pastel landscape of Yosemite to the Dalai Lama. Her website is www.terrypappas.com.

Art to me is a form of expression. Each one of my paintings tells a story and represents moments of my life. Art is my tool of the heart and soul. The majority of my paintings have been completed with oil paints. A few of my works of art are mixed-media because I used pastel and colored pencil.

I am so thankful to work in the field of psychology because I can incorporate nature and art into my practice. I am currently the Assistant Clinical Director of Age Song Institute in San Francisco. I have worked at Age Song for three years. I assist in the oversight of a magnificent intern training program designed for graduate students in the field of psychology. The training and values of Age Song Institute emphasize holistic and mindful approaches based in Existential/Humanistic Psychology, Process Oriented Psychology, Expressive Arts Therapy, and Gerontology.