He has an eye for eyes

Ocularist's artificial eyes look like real thing
By Charlene Gray McClain, Journal Staff Writer

If the eye is the window of the soul, you could say master ocularist Raymond Peters can take a peek anytime he likes.

It's not that the 62-year-old technician has some special power, but he does have an exceptional skill with which he can replace a missing or blighted eye with a plastic look-alike.

Enter the little known field of prosthetic eyemaking, where few are called and even fewer become masters.

Peters, who has offices in Upper Marlboro and Baltimore, learned the "art" of eyemaking while working in prosthetics for the Navy during World War II. He said he was designated a master ocularist in the '50's by the American Society of Ocularist's, although he said the field remains unregulated an unmonitored. He would like to see that changed, charging that people have been harmed by those with minimal experience installing mass-produced eyes.

"It's a crime" he said indignantly, momentarily dropping his usually good-natured demeanor.

He said a good ocularist needs the skills of an artist and a knowledge of prosthesis and dentistry. Peters has all three. He paints and sculpts for pleasure, has an unused degree in dentistry and a wide experience with prosthesis.

His biggest satisfaction, he said, is seeing his patients walk out of his office with an artificial eye, for which he charged between $1,200 and $2,000, that does all but see.

"Most patients that come to you are traumatized" said Peters, a big man with a deep voice. "You bring these people back to normal."

A recent patient had been shot in the right side of the face and had already undergone extensive reconstructive surgery. He had traveled 90 miles with his wife from the Shenandoah Mountains to see Peters.

"It really impressed me when he made the first eye for me." said the man who wished to remain anonymous. Because of the healing process, the original false eye had to be replaced. He sat quietly in an examination room and squeezed the hand of his wife tightly as Peters injected a spongelike substance into his empty eye socket for an impression for the second prosthesis.

Peters said his practice has grown in recent years because of the increase in drug use and its attendant violence, much of it caused by firearms. Right now, he has about 2,000 patients.

To make the eyes appear real, Peters uses a methodical process that starts with making a mold of the eye socket for proper fit. He meticulously hand paints the eyes and uses red silk fibers to form the pattern of veins. The end results appear real enough to be almost eerie when seen by themselves on a counter top. It's a job that takes finesse," said Peters, who said he is one of only a handful of remaining "masters" who started in the 1940's, learning from highly skilled eyemakers who brought themselves, and their craft, to America from Germany. After having worked in the office of one of the most prominent emigrants in Washington, he bought the practice in 1963 and later moved it to Upper Marlboro and Baltimore. His practice, called the Eye Restorations Clinic of Mager & Gougelmen, is one from which he says it will be difficult to retire.

"Who would replace me?" he wonders innocently.

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