Why would a dentist be an artist as well? The artist explains…and you’ll find that Dr. Curtis is no ordinary dentist (if there’s something this dentist can’t do, I haven’t learned of it). Watercolor painter Dr. Eric Curtis shares how art influences how he sees the world—how it makes it more vibrant and how it makes everything beautiful. Dr. Curtis travels with a small watercolor set that he tucks neatly into his backpack. As the editor of the Arizona Dental Association’s monthly journal, Inscriptions, as well as writing/editing for several other publications, Dr. Curtis has sketched and then watercolor painted hundreds of objects, landscapes, and people. Why not feeling it was his best work, Dr. Curtis sketched and painted the piece in this video in a little over an hour. Immediately afterwards, he fired up his self-built wood-fired brick oven and made homemade pizza pies for a party of about twenty people—quite a well-rounded, Renaissance man. By the way, if you’re in the Safford or Thatcher, AZ area, and you’re looking for a dentist, go to Mount Graham Dental. I know the team and they’re great, and Dr. Curtis is thorough, engaging, gentle, and the guy’s fascinating—beyond the great dental care, you just going to chat with Dr. Curtis is worth it
Dr. Eric earned an AA from Eastern Arizona College. He also holds a BA in economics, with honors in Spanish, from the University of Arizona, and an MA in English from Northern Arizona University. He graduated in 1985 from the Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry, University of the Pacific (San Francisco), and was a…
Dr. Eric earned an AA from Eastern Arizona College. He also holds a BA in economics, with honors in Spanish, from the University of Arizona, and an MA in English from Northern Arizona University. He graduated in 1985 from the Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry, University of the Pacific (San Francisco), and was a dental polyclinic resident at the Centre Hopitalier Universitaire Vaudois, University of Lausanne, Switzerland. Dr. Eric speaks Spanish and French.
In private practice in Safford since 1987, Dr. Eric is a Master of the Academy of General Dentistry (MAGD) and an adjunct associate professor in the Dugoni School’s Department of Dental Practice. He is past president of both the American Association of Dental Editors and the American Academy of the History of Dentistry, and a past member of the American Dental Association’s Council on Communications. He is currently editor of the journal of the Arizona Dental Association and associate editor for the Academy of General Dentistry. He is past president of the Arizona Academy of General Dentistry. He was awarded the AGD’s Lifelong Learning and Service Award in 2007.
Author of four books and more than 450 articles, Dr. Eric received the Hayden-Harris Award from the American Academy of the History of Dentistry, the Medallion of Distinction from University of the Pacific, and the American Dental Association’s Distinguished Editor Award. He is a fellow of the American College of Dentists. He was also elected to fellowship in the International College of Dentists, Academy of Dentistry International, and the Pierre Fauchard Academy. Dr. Eric was named Dentist of the Year by the Arizona Dental Association in both 1999 and 2004.
Dr. Eric was the attending dentist for the 2012 Mainpat Multidisciplinary Global Leaning Project, College of Health and Human Services, Northern Arizona University, Mainpat, India. He is a former member of the Arizona State Board of Dental Examiners and currently serves as a chief examiner with the Western Regional Examining Board (WREB) dental licensing examination agency.