Annual Meeting with the Mayo Clinic Irving S. Cooper Visiting Professor Lecture

Wednesday, November 12, 2025 at 5 PM | Free

Join us for a special evening combining the Rochester Art Center's Annual Meeting with Mayo Clinic’s Irving S. Cooper Visiting Professor Lecture. Infused with live music, this inspiring event will begin with a celebration of the Art Center's accomplishments and future initiatives, honoring the vibrant community that supports us. Then, Dr. Tasha Golden will deliver the 2025 Irving S. Cooper Visiting Professor Lecture: Reimagining Wellbeing: Impacts of the Arts on Health, Resilience, and Innovation, sponsored by the Mayo Clinic Dolores Jean Lavins Center for Humanities in Medicine. Vivian Lark will offer pre and post-event performances. 

Join us for this unique opportunity to tap into and learn about art’s healing and creative power.

What to Expect

5:00 PM - Doors Open

Arrive early to enjoy the galleries, mingle with fellow attendees and find a seat in the Grand Lobby. Enjoy mulled cider or coffee and indulge in a delectable charcuterie board to music by Vivian Lark. 

6:00 PM - Rochester Art Center Annual Meeting

Rochester Art Center Board President David Morris will open the evening with recognition of outgoing board members and a brief election of new board members to serve the organization. Executive Director Pamela Hugdahl will offer an overview of Rochester Art Center’s current position and welcome Mayo Clinic Dolores Jean Lavins Center for Humanities in Medicine as program partner for the evening.  

6:20 PM - Mayo Clinic 2025 Irving S. Cooper Visiting Professor Lecture by Dr. Tasha Golden: Reimagining Wellbeing: Impacts of the Arts on Health, Resilience, and Innovation

After the lecture we invite you to enjoy dessert and music by Vivian Lark. 

Reserve your spot in advance by using the button below to RSVP.

Join the event remotely with this livestream link: https://www.youtube.com/live/H-cjvfcu7vI?si=QVnZGGpssMz5AeIG

About the Artists

Tasha Golden, Ph.D. is a singer/songwriter turned behavioral scientist, and leading expert in the impacts of arts and creativity on health and innovation. She speaks and consults globally on creativity, leadership, wellbeing and change.

Dr. Golden was the first Director of Research for the International Arts + Mind Lab at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, is adjunct faculty for the University of Florida’s Center for Arts in Medicine, and lead author of Arts on Prescription: A Field Guide for US Communities. Named one of Fierce Healthcare’s “Fierce 50,” she has published widely on creativity, behavior, and wellbeing.

The former frontwoman of internationally touring band Ellery, Golden now draws on her artistic and scientific backgrounds to help clients and audiences apply the science or creativity to drive wellbeing, connection, and growth.

Vivian Lark teaches piano, voice, and ukulele to a diverse range of learners, including students with autism and other learning differences. In 2020, she founded a nonprofit organization, Music Lessons for All, to sponsor students in music and art education. In 2024, Vivian was awarded a Creative Individuals grant from the State of Minnesota to develop The Lark Piano Method, a multicultural piano instruction book.

About Mayo Clinic Dolores Jean Lavins Center for Humanities in Medicine 

Mayo Clinic Humanities in Medicine enhances Mayo Clinic's primary value — the needs of the patient come first. Our mission is to integrate arts and humanities into the healing environment through each shield of medicine. The Mayo Clinic Dolores Jean Lavins Center for Humanities in Medicine in Rochester, Minnesota, offers diverse and creative experiences for patients, families, learners, employees and the public.

Website: https://www.mayoclinic.org/patient-visitor-guide/humanities-in-medicine/minnesota 

Made possible by a gift from Mrs. Sissel H. Cooper Bos and the Cooper Institute for Advanced Studies in Medicine and the Humanities.