C.V
Dr. Rachel M. Thomas
Post-Secondary Education
Ph.D Interdisciplinary Humanities, Concordia University, Montreal, 2023
Master of Fine Arts, The University of Calgary, Calgary, 2016
Bachelor of Fine Arts (Honours), York University, Toronto, 2014
Further Education
Fellowship in Higher Education, Post Doctoral Fellowship in Higher Education, HE Academy, Teesside University (June 2025)
Adobe Certified Professional, Adobe via Teesside University (Ongoing)
Armouring: Low Relief Shield, Thak Ironworks (Ontario) 2017
Armouring: Low Relief, Thak Ironworks (Ontario) 2016
Armouring: The Gauntlet, Thak Ironworks (Ontario) 2015
Armouring: The Breastplate, Thak Ironworks (Ontario), 2014
Armouring: The Spangenhelm, Thak Ironworks (Ontario), 2013
Royal Conservatory of Music: Grade 8 Piano, 2009
Royal Conservatory of Music: Grade 8 Voice, 2009
Royal Conservatory of Music: Grade 3 Theory and Composition, 2009
Selected Grants/Scholarships
Concordia Public Scholars Program (2020)
SSHRC Doctoral Grant (2016)
Concordia Fine Arts Fellowship (2016)
Royal College of Art (RCA) London UK Printmaking scholarship and exchange (2016)
Canada Council for the Arts Research and Creation (2015)
Canada Council for the Arts Research and Creation (2014)
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PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
• Graphic Medicine Review (Journal), Reviewer, Mass College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS), Boston, MA, USA (Ongoing)
• Energy Stories Lab, Faculty Associate, University of Calgary. Calgary, AB (Ongoing)
• Health Humanities Roundtable Committee Member, Centre for Interdisciplinary Studies in Society and Culture, Concordia University. Montreal, QC (Ongoing)
• Committee Chair, +15 Gallery Space, The University of Calgary. Calgary, AB. (December 2015- September 2016)
• Committee Member, +15 Gallery Space, The University of Calgary. Calgary, AB. (September 2014-Sept. 2016)
• Call Centre Volunteer, Calgary Distress Centre/Suicide Hotline. Calgary, AB. (September 2014-May 2015)
PROFESSIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS
Graphic Novel Publications:
Thomas, R. Shrink: Story of a Fat Girl. Penn State Press: Graphic Mundi, 2024
Forthcoming contributions:
(Residency) Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences Visiting Scholar (Graphic medicine), Boston, Massachusetts, February 2026
(Public Lecture) “Staring Back: Othered Bodies and Graphic Medicine”, Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Boston, Massachusetts, February 2026
(Public Lecture) “One Fifteen at MIMA: How can comics promote health literacy and better patient care?”, Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art, Middlesbrough Yorkshire, UK, March 2026
(Book Launch/Talk as part of the Art and Social Series) MIMA: Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art, Middlesbrough, Yorkshire, UK. May 2026
(Illustrated Qualitative Study) Harrison, S., Suri, S., Loughran, K., Thomas, R. (2025) “Exercise Based Interventions Targeting Balance and Falls in People with COPD: A Systematic Review and Meta- Analysis”. Journal TBA.
Thomas, R., Rail, G. (2025) “Reproducing Stigma: Obesity and Women’s Experiences of Reproduction”. Journal TBA.
Publications:
Lewis, A. D. & Thomas, R., (2025) “An Interview with Rachel M. Thomas on Weight Bias and Shrink: Story of a Fat Girl”, Graphic Medicine Review 5(2). doi: https://doi.org/10.7191/gmr.1058
Thomas, R. “The Weight of Covid-19.” The Montreal Gazette. 11 May 2021, A8. montrealgazette.com
Eiserman, J. Us-Them-Us. “A Well-Protected Social Participant I,II,III” (Cont. Thomas, Rachel. Cultural and Pedagogical Inquiry, Vol.9, No.1 (2017). Pages 1-45.
Thomas, R. “Absent Subjectivity: Visual Art and the Critique of Medical Discourse in The Journal of Integrated Studies Vol. 6, No. 1 (2015). http://jis.athabascau.ca/index.php/jis/article/view/201
Online Publications:
Thomas, R. (April 9 2024) Postgrad tips on graphic medicine: the intersection between comics and healthcare. The Vibe. https://blogs.tees.ac.uk/students/2024/04/09/postgrad-tips-on-graphic- medicine-the-intersection-between-comics-and-healthcare/
Thomas, R. (May 4 2021) Gained weight during the pandemic? You’re not alone. Concordia Public Scholars Blog. https://www.concordia.ca/cunews/offices/vprgs/sgs/public-scholars- 20/2021/05/04/gained-weight-during-the-pandemic-youre-not-alone.html
Thomas, R. (March 11 2021) Male Gaze. Concordia Public Scholars Blog. https://www.concordia.ca/cunews/offices/vprgs/sgs/public-scholars- 20/2021/03/11/male- gaze.html Thomas, R. (September 17 2020) War on Obesity. Concordia Public Scholars Blog. https://www.concordia.ca/cunews/offices/vprgs/sgs/public-scholars- 20/2020/09/17/war-on- obesity.html
Thomas, R. (September 1 2020) Excerpt: “Fear”. Concordia Public Scholars Blog. https://www.concordia.ca/cunews/offices/vprgs/sgs/public-scholars- 20/2020/09/01/shrink- fear.html
Refereed Conferences:
Thomas, R. Panel: “Graphic Medicine: New and Notable”, Toronto Comic Art Festival, Toronto, Canada, June 2025
Thomas, R. Panel: “Opening Keynote Panel: Spotlight on Graphic Medicine”, Toronto Comic Art Festival, Toronto, Canada, June 2025
Thomas, R. “Shrink: Story of a Fat Girl”, Ekphrasis and the Speaking Image: Interrogating forms of Sequential Art Conference, Bangalore, India, November 2023
Thomas, R. “Shrink: Story of a Fat Girl”, Graphic Medicine Conference, Toronto, Canada, July 2023
Thomas R. “Shrink: Story of a Fat Girl: The Fat Body in Medicine and Culture”, Fat Politics: Multidisciplinary Approaches to Activism, Identities, and Health Discourses Panel, Concordia University (Graduate History Student Association), Montreal QC, April 2023
Thomas, R. “Life in Ink: How Comics make medical and sociological research accessible”, 4th Space Workshop Series, Montreal, Canada, February 2020
Thomas, R. “Shrink: Graphic Medicine and the Fat Body”, Hybrid Bodies Conference, Concordia University, Montreal QC, August 2019
Thomas, R. “Shrink: An Interdisciplinary approach to Obesity”, Simone de Beauvoir Institute Annual Conference (“Feminist Activism and Health Industries”), Concordia University, Montreal QC, May 2019
Thomas, R. “Pachus: The implications of Fatness in Medical History”, McGill University Kinesiology student presentation, Montreal, QC, April 2019
Thomas, R. “Shrink: An Interdisciplinary Approach to Obesity”, Jacquelyn Duffin Health and Humanities Conference, Queens University, Kingston, ON, February 2019.
Thomas, R. “Musings of a Fat Medusa: Liminal Bodies in Social Spaces”, Simone de Beauvoir Institute Annual Conference (‘Unsettling Feminisms”), Concordia University, Montreal QC, May 2018.
Thomas, R. “Pure Immanence: Complex Heterotopias and the Transference of Pain in Self-Harm Behaviours, Ontario Shores Mental Health Conference, Whitby, ON, February 2017.
Thomas, R. “Husks: Self-Mutilation, Identity and Protection”, 699 Conference, Calgary AB. December 2015.
Thomas, R. “Anomaly: Mental Illness in Contemporary Art”, Spark! Disability Art Festival, Calgary AB, December, 2015.
Thomas, R. “Explorations in Plate Armour”, Presentation at the University of Calgary, Calgary AB. September 2015.
Thomas, R. “Absent Subjectivity: Visual Art and the Critique of Medical Discourse”, Highway 2 Conference: Making Inroads, Lethbridge AB. May 2015
Thomas, R. “Anomaly: Artist in Residence”, Umbrella Visual Arts Conference, Calgary AB. May 2015
Thomas, R. “Contemporary Sculpture and Self-Mutilation: Bodies in Flux”, Lunch on Us at the University of Calgary, Calgary AB. October 2014.
Interviews:
Dillon, B (2025, April 24) Fanbase Press Interviews Rachel M. Thomas on the Release of the Graphic
Memoir, ‘Shrink’, Through Graphic Mundi, [Online Publication] Fanbase Press, https://fanbasepress.com/press/interviews/comics/item/56647-fanbase-press-interviews-rachel-m-thomas-on-the-release-of-the-graphic-memoir-shrink-through-graphic-mundi/
Bruineman, M. (2025, February 8) Collingwood woman’s graphic novel aims to Shrink obesity stigma [Print publication] Collingwood Today, https://www.collingwoodtoday.ca/arts- culture/collingwood-womans-graphic-novel-aims-to-shrink-obesity-stigma- 10199967?utm_source=email&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feb%2008,%202025%200 2:30%20pm&utm_content=mc_col_local
Philipson, G. (2025, January 13) A Chat about Shrink [Radio Broadcast] BBC (1hr 15, 1hr39) https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0kccsv9
Berlo, T. (2025, January 10) Research meets art in new graphic novel [Print publication] The Creemore Echo.
Butler, L. (2024) Author of ‘Shrink’ tells us how her graphic novel challenges everything you know about fat bodies[Online Publication]. New Feminist Magazine. https://thenewfeminist.co.uk/2024/11/author-of-shrink-tells-us-how-her-graphic-novel- challenges-everything-you-know-about-fat-bodies/
Marandola, S. (2021, April 8) Montreal Researcher pens graphic novel about body shaming, diet culture and medical stigma. [Radio Broadcast]. CBC. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/montreal-researcher-pens-graphic-novel- 1.5974988
Hall, N., Rand, A (2021, May 19) Interview, Shrink: Story of a Fat Girl. [Radio Broadcast]. CJAD 800
Other Media:
The Hindustan Times. “Pounds and Prejudice.” News Article, Sukanya Datta. April 2025
Publishers Weekly. "Shrink: Story of a Fat Girl." Review of Shrink: Story of a Fat Girl, by Rachel M.Thomas. October 2024. https://www.publishersweekly.com/9781637790793.
Graphic Policy. “Shrink: Story of a Fat Girl is an interesting graphic memoir that’s about how we perceive weight”. Youtube Video, 6m38. Published October 24, 2024 at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IXyaGSEx8E0
Kurtz, R. “Shrink: Story of a Fat Girl.” Review of Shrink: Story of a Fat Girl, by Rachel M. Thomas, October 2024. https://www.graphicmedicine.org/comic-reviews/shrink-story-of-a-fat-girl/
Selected Peer Reviewed Exhibitions
Thomas, R. The Monster. VAV Gallery, Montreal, Canada. June 2023
Thomas, R. The Skin Machine. Latitude 53 Gallery, Edmonton AB. June 2018.
Thomas, R. Dissident Vectors. Hexagram Video Production Studio, Montreal, Canada. Group Exhibition, April 2018.
Thomas, R. I am Subject to Change. 199x Collective, Toronto ON. Group Exhibition, February 2018.
Thomas, R. Korper/Leib. University of Calgary +15 Gallery, Arts Commons. Calgary AB, Solo Exhibition, February 2017.
Thomas, R. Genetically Altered, Counter Culture Labs, Many Labs and Omni Commons, Oakland, California. Group Exhibition, February 2017
Thomas, R. Remember/Imagine. The Centre for Social Innovation, Toronto ON. Group Exhibition, November 2016.
Thomas, R. Spark! Disability Festival. Arts Commons, Calgary AB. Group Exhibition, November 2016.
Thomas, R. Us-Them-Us. University of Calgary Art Department, Calgary AB. Group Exhibition, May 2016
Thomas, R. Korper/Leib. The Little Gallery, Calgary AB. Solo Exhibition, December 2015.
Thomas, R. Spark! Disability Festival. Studio C, Calgary AB. Group Exhibition, November 2015.
Thomas, R. Anomaly. 621 Gallery, Calgary AB. Solo Exhibition. March 2015.
Thomas, R. Veil. L.E. Shore Memorial Gallery, Thornbury, ON. Group Exhibition. April 2014.
Thomas, R. Written in Red. J.E.H Macdonald House, Vaughan ON. Solo Exhibition. March 2014
Thomas, R. Ephemera. The Gales Gallery, Toronto ON. Group Exhibition. February 2014
Thomas, R. New Erotica. Urban Gallery, Toronto ON. Group Exhibition. August 2013
Thomas, R. Progress/Regress. Gallery 1444, Toronto ON. Group Exhibition. March 2013
Thomas, R. Kunst-O-Rama. Joan and Martin Goldfarb Centre for Fine Arts, Toronto ON. Group Exhibition, March 2013
Thomas, R. Flatline. Special Projects Gallery, Toronto ON. Solo Exhibition. January 2013
Thomas, R. Veil. Eleanor Winters Art Gallery, Toronto ON. Group Exhibition. November 2012
Thomas, R. Remember/Forget: An Exhibition of Conflicting Emotions. Collingwood Public Library Gallery, Collingwood ON. Solo Exhibition. October 2012
Thomas, R. Murray Clerkson Award Exhibition. The Blue Mountain Foundation for the Arts, Collingwood ON. Group Exhibition, May 2012
Thomas, R. Psychopomp. Joan and Martin Goldfarb Centre for Fine Arts, Toronto ON. Group exhibition. March 2012.
Thomas, R. Intermediate Sculpture Show. Special Projects Gallery, Toronto Ontario. Group Exhibition, March 2012.
Thomas, R. Critical Issues Exhibition. Samual J. Zacks Gallery, Toronto ON. Group exhibition. November 2009
Thomas, R. Blue Mountain Foundation for the Arts Juried Art Show. Blue Mountain Foundation for the Arts, Collingwood ON. Group exhibition. April 2009
Comic Conventions/Book Signings
(Comic Convention) Thought Bubble, Leeds, Yorkshire, UK. November 11-17, 2024