A Minneapolis native, Thomas Paquette has had over 40 solo gallery exhibitions in New York, Chicago, St. Louis, Washington DC, Philadelphia, Maine, Minneapolis and elsewhere. In addition, five museums have mounted solo shows of his paintings. He was one of the first three recipients of the three-year Residency-Fellowship granted by the Foundation for Advancement in the Arts, Miami. He completed artist-residencies at the American Academy in Rome, the Millay Colony, the McNamara Foundation and three National Parks. He also was a special guest resident of the Aegean Arts and Cultural Exchange. His paintings have been chosen to hang in eleven embassies around the world, and his works are widely collected. Thomas holds a BFA from Bemidji State University in Minnesota and a MFA from Southern Illinois University. He currently resides in Pennsylvania with his wife Ellen.
"I get wrapped up in observing the place-to-place and moment-to-moment differences in weather, climate and light; the scars and remains of ongoing geological processes (such as old river valleys or jagged mountain peaks formed over eons); the imprint and traces of humanity; and the vital force of the whole world 'doing its own thing' on this little bit of matter spinning around the sun. I find these expressions of the earth – almost like emotions on an incomprehensibly large scale – endlessly engaging. Nothing compares with simply bearing witness to this ongoing show, especially as it unfolds in nature. Painting helps me focus on this.
Similar to this sumptuous play taking place all around the world, but on a far humbler scale, paint becomes a product of time and moves across my canvas and accretes its own layered eons, its own landscape. Layers of paint come and go, and in the end, I never know what will result or exactly which forces will conspire to produce that result. The evolution of a painting is as electrifying to me as a thunderstorm and as fascinating as a well-written novel." |
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