Practice Information
Fine art Photography and Plastic Surgery may seem like very different careers, but for at least one individual, they are
inextricably bound. David Teplica, MD, MFA received the Trustee's Scholarship to complete the Master of Fine Arts
degree from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. During the same two year time period between General
Surgery and Plastic Surgery training at the University of Chicago, Teplica received a Surgical Scientist Training Grant
from the NIH and worked in the laboratory at night doing anatomic research.

"My dual obsessions are both about perception of the body. In photography --in two dimensions-- I'm concerned
about how light plays off of body surfaces and changes the way a person or situation is perceived. Form, symmetry,
and composition can all be used to evoke specific emotional or psychological responses from the viewer. In the
three-dimensional field of Plastic Surgery, form is altered so that a patient sees himself differently. Interestingly,
society may or may not see the changes, but often reacts more favorably to a post-surgical patient who carries himself
more confidently through life's daily routine."

Teplica manages a busy private plastic surgical practice in Chicago with patients who travel from across the country
and from abroad. His photography has been widely reproduced, the images are exhibited worldwide, and prints are
held in many museum, corporate, and private collections.