Art Garfunkel Says He Stopped Touring Due to Private Health Battle

Lauren Novak April 4, 12:30 pm

American singer and actor Art Garfunkel relaxes on a park bench in the Embankment Gardens, London and in 2014 — Getty

83-year-old Art Garfunkel is opening up to his fans about his private health battle, and how it led him to stop touring. Garfunkel shared that, with the support of his wife Kim and his sons, he is ready to be back in the public eye again after shying away due to psoriasis, a condition that causes raised, red, scaly patches of skin which can be itchy and painful. He admitted that the condition caused him to cancel tour dates in the past.

He explained to PEOPLE, “Performing is such a big part of who I am, so having to step back because of my psoriasis was difficult. I could be in front of thousands of people but still have to cover up. It can affect your confidence, your comfort in your own skin, and it isolates you in ways people don’t always see.”

Grammy award winning singer Art Garfunkel sings 'God Bless America' in between the seventh inning of the game bewteen the Chicago Cubs and Philadelphia Phillies on June 15, 2014 at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Mitchell Leff/Getty Images

Garfunkel continued, “Psoriasis is something I lived with quietly for many years. It was part of my life even during my most public moments, including on tours, but I rarely, if ever, spoke about it. I found ways to cover it on stage, in photos and in my day-to-day life. It’s not something people would have known by looking at me, but it was always there, under the surface. I am just glad it never made its way into the music. I’m happy about that change in my life.” Luckily, Garfunkel said he finally found a treatment called ILUMYA that has been helping and has made him feel more confident about performing again.

Art Garfunkel and Art Garfunkel jr. perform onstage at The New York Pops 41st Birthday Gala honoring Clive Davis on April 29, 2024 in New York City

Arturo Holmes/Getty Images

Since ILUMYA has helped him so much, he joined their “I LUV YA for The Long Haul” campaign as a paid spokesperson, opening up about the emotional pain of psoriasis. He credited his family for helping him while he was struggling the most and hopes the campaign will help others dealing with psoriasis. He added that the campaign is “about love, support and showing others they are not alone.”

These days, Garfunkel has been working with his son and fellow singer Art Garfunkel Jr. They released an LP called Father and Son in November 2024 calling themselves “Garfunkel and Garfunkel.”