Promoting Awareness of Parkinson’s Through Art

For most people, public awareness of Parkinson's — a term preferred by the community without the word “disease” — rarely extends beyond visible symptoms like tremors, stiff muscles, slow movements or mobilities issues, or a handful of famous people associated with it, most notably Michael J. Fox and Muhammad Ali. While many of us have at least known or met people who have dementia or Alzheimer’s disease, the same can’t be said for Parkinson’s. Similarly, there have been initiatives, campaigns from NGOs and corporate sponsors as well as government policies that cater to the former, but not for Parkinson’s. So, this begs the question, why does Parkinson's — the world's and Malaysia's second most common neurodegenerative disease — still face such a massive gap in public awareness and support from various stakeholders?

The answer probably lies in the prevalence. There are approximately 20,000 persons with Parkinson’s (PwP) in Malaysia, compared to 200,000 to 260,000 people who have dementia, hence more attention and support for the latter. Nevertheless, both conditions are expected to increase fivefold in the next twenty years. Therefore, more needs to be done to raise awareness of Parkinson’s and provide essential assistance to those who need it, too.

With the aim to amplify the voices of the Parkinson's community, we hope to make a difference through a small art-based project funded by Universiti Malaya's Ungku Aziz Centre for Development Studies. In collaboration with Malaysian Parkinson’s Disease Association (MPDA), this Poverty Research Lab 3.0 (UMG004-2025UAC) project focuses on art as a tool for the participants to express themselves and as a potential means of enhancing their socioeconomic status, especially for those who face financial constraints due to Parkinson’s.

Sample souvenir items featuring the project participants’ art.

Many studies have shown that engagement with art is a form of flexible and effective rehabilitation that enhances PwP’s dexterity, visual-cognitive skills and general motor functions. In the process of making art, the participants are involved in a sensorial experience that produces a unique piece of self-expression which is a part of themselves. This helps to address the issue of stigmatisation many PwP face due to their neurological, cognitive and physiological conditions. They affirm their identity as a unique individual and the sense of pride in creating something special helps to boost their self-esteem. Not only that, various initiatives such as those by ArtLifting (www.artlifting.com), Art Enables (art-enables.org) and Foot and Mouth Painting Artists Malaysia (www.mfpamalaysia.com) prove that art can be a way to help artists with disabilities to support themselves financially.

With these objectives in mind, we have conducted three special art workshops, attended by 20 PwP as well as carers. As none of the participants have had any formal art training, we opted for fun, simple techniques that can be applied regardless of age or condition, namely puddle pour, finger-painting and stamping art. Facilitated by our experienced art instructor, the participants enjoyed playing with colours and ideas. In the process, their tremors subsided, they felt peace and took pride in their artistic creations which turned out to be stunning, unique artworks. Despite all challenges that they face due to Parkinson’s, art offers solace, an avenue to reconnect with their life experiences and reflect on what Parkinson’s means to them.

Group photo with the invited guests, project participants, MPDA members and visitors.

With the kind support from Universiti Malaya Central Library, all the 46 art pieces are now featured in the “Our Art, Our Stories” Art Exhibition at Exhibition Space, Level 1, Universiti Malaya Central Library. It was launched on 4 July 2026 by the UM Central Library Executive Director, Mdm Raja Sothi A/P Raja Sapai. In the opening ceremony, the project advisor, Associate Professor Dr Tan Kit Mun who is a senior consultant geriatrician from UMMC, spoke about the benefits of art as a form of therapy and the project art instructor and exhibition curator, Dr Hazlin Anita Zainal Abidin recounted her wonderful experience in working with the participants whom she considered “able in their own way”. Their words of wisdom aptly summarise the spirit of the project which is about empowering PwP through art.

Speech by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tan Kit Mun.

The art exhibition will be ongoing until the end of July 2026. We invite you to come and engage with the unique art pieces which provide a window into the world of PwP. You may see anything, depending on your imagination, from a teddy bear, beating heart, dragon dance to raging bull in the “Puddle Pour Art” section, or a variety of mesmerising shapes and colours in the “Chop! Chop! Chop!” section as well as different types of trees, each with a life and personality of its own, in the “Fancy Finger Painting” section, all by PwP with no formal training in art.

The project team members (from left): Dr Beh Wen Fen, Dr Ang Pei Soo, Dr Hazlin Anita Zainal Abidin, Dr Yeo Siang Lee, Ms Sara Lew.

For us, we see resilience, strengths and aspirations of PwP, and the voice of the Parkinson’s community which deserves to be “seen” and heard.

For more information about Parkinson’s, please visit https://mpda.org.my/. The link to UM Library’s social media post on the opening ceremony is https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1K8uBqqDb6/.

Authors:

Dr Yeo Siang Lee (Faculty of Languages and Linguistics, UM)

Dr Ang Pei Soo (Faculty of Languages and Linguistics, UM)

Dr Beh Wen Fen (Faculty of Creative Arts, UM)

Dr Hazlin Anita Zainal Abidin (Faculty of Film, Theatre and Animation, UiTM)

Ms Sara Lew (President of MPDA)

Sender:

1. Name: Yeo Siang Lee

2. Address: English Language Department, Faculty of Languages & Linguistics, Universiti Malaya, 50603 Lembah Pantai, Kuala Lumpur.

3. Phone: 0176828579

4. Email: yeosl@um.edu.my