Panel Discussion: Neuroscience, Art, and Parkinson’s

The New Mexico Museum of Art Vladem Contemporary will present Finding Parkinson’s: Doing Battle with My Brain, a special community event opening September 5, 2025. The installation showcases the deeply personal artwork of C. David Thomas, an acclaimed Boston-based artist who has lived with Parkinson’s disease (PD) following exposure to Agent Orange during the Vietnam War.

Through striking works that layer facial imagery onto his own MRI brain scans and lithographs, Thomas invites audiences to witness both the struggles and strength of life with PD. His art explores not only the neurology of the disease, but also the resilience of the human spirit when confronted with illness.

The exhibition will be accompanied by two free public panel discussions at the New Mexico School for the Arts (NMSA), bringing together artists, neuroscientists, and movement specialists to examine how creativity and physical expression can transform the lives of people living with Parkinson’s.

Location: New Mexico School for the Arts, 500 Montezuma Ave., Santa Fe (Free parking across from the school)

o Saturday, September 6, 3–4 p.m. Neuroscience, Art, and Parkinson’s

o Dr. David Rose, retired Harvard professor and pioneer of Universal Design for Learning

o Dan Monroe, former Director of the Peabody Essex Museum

o Artist C. David Thomas