Colbert Studio
© 2022 by Thomas Colbert
Light and reflection draw me to the flame of art. I have painted for almost fifty years and the joy of color and applying it with a brush never cease to give me pleasure. I paint and time disappears into the painting. I am always looking for a way to elevate the everyday into something that inspires a new understanding of our lives. Often, I work in series on a theme, looking for different relationships between objects. Representation is the jumping off point for an experience of unexpected revelation, when the painting becomes alive and the dialog between me and the work is one of give and take, where one mark determines the next. The work is most rewarding when the painting actually has a mind of its own and things get out of control and seemingly lost, when finally there is a reclamation of the surface and the true dialog begins. It is the surprising things that happen that keep me going.
I also like to compare painting to the experience of music-making. It is a performance of sorts that builds as time passes, as the surface acquires a history of paint. There is the beginning, the middle and the end. All is influenced by what has happened before. Portraits provide a vivid example of how the subtlest mark can change the impression of the sitters character. When painting objects, I like to animate them so they have their own character and are lively in the composition. Landscapes are in two dimensions where I can enter from above and run around in the imaginary third dimension. Light sets the mood and reflections reverberate in the mind.
Thomas Colbert
Resume Thomas Colbert (b. 1951)
Solo Exhibitions
2019 Open Studio, Wayne County Arts Alliance Tour, Hawley, PA
Dime Bank, Hawley, PA
2014 Open Studio, Wayne County Arts Alliance Tour, Hawley, PA
2012 Open Studio, Wayne County Arts Alliance Tour, Hawley, PA
2010 Cocoon, Hawley, PA
2009 Open Studio, Wayne County Arts Alliance Tour, Hawley, PA
2002 Brooklyn Brewery, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, NY
2000 Open Studio, Yaddo Artists’ Open Studios, Yaddo Centennial Arts Festival, NYC
1998 The Looking Glass Gallery, Hawley, PA
1997 Lucky Street Gallery, Key West, FL
1995 Lucky Street Gallery, Key West, FL
1994 Lucky Street Gallery, Angels & Others, Key West, FL
1992 Lucky Street Gallery, Key West, FL
1991 Lucky Street Gallery, Key West, FL
1990 St. Peter's Church, New York, NY
1986 Anakota Arts, Rapid City, SD
Lucky Street Gallery, Key West, FL, Key West Gouaches
1983 Gallery 72, Omaha, NE
Maples Gallery, Fairleigh Dickenson University, Teaneck, NJ
Blanden Memorial Art Gallery, Fort Dodge, IA
1982 Westmar College, Le Mars, IA Personal / Spaces
Sioux City Art Center, Sioux City, IA, Open Line
University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA
1981 Witter Gallery, Storm Lake, IA
Two Person Exhibitions
2019 The Lodge at Woodloch, Hawley, PA
2014 The Lodge at Woodloch, Hawley, PA
Group Exhibitions
2013 Hanson Gallery and Decorium, Honesdale, PA
The Looking Glass Gallery, Hawley, PA
2012 Lucky Street Gallery, Key West, FL
PA Artisan Exhibit, Schulman Gallery, Luzerne Community College, Nanticoke,PA
SPCA Show, Schulman Gallery, Luzerne Community College, Nanticoke, PA
Hanson Gallery and Decorium, Honesdale, PA
2011 Lucky Street Gallery, Key West, FL
Hanson Gallery and Decorium, Honesdale, Pa, The Art of Sports and Games,
2010 Lucky Street Gallery, Key West, FL
Hanson Gallery and Decorium, Honesdale, Pa, Autumn Marvels
Hanson Gallery and Decorium, Honesdale, PA, Something Fishy
Hanson Gallery and Decorium, Honesdale, PA, Roots and Rhythm
2009 Grand Opening of the Hanson Gallery and Decorium, Honesdale, PA
2004 World Trade Center Site Memorial Competition, Virtual Exhibition: wtcsitememorial.org
Salmagundi Club, New York, NY
2003 River Gallery, Narrowsburg, NY
2001 The Looking Glass Gallery, Hawley, PA
2000 Williamsburg Art & Historical Center, Williamsburg, NY
1996 Sioux City Art Center, Sioux City, IA
1993 Gallery 72, Omaha, NE
1992 Lehman College Art Gallery, Bronx, New York, NY A Day Without Art
1990 Helander Gallery, Palm Beach, FL
1989 Helio Galleries, New York, NY, Showcase Exhibition
Lucky Street Gallery, Key West, FL
Ruschman Art Gallery, Indianapolis, IN
1988 Lucky Street Gallery, Key West, FL
1987 Ruschman Art Gallery. Indianapolis, IN
Lucky Street Gallery, Key West, FL
VCCA Art Tour, 10 Colleges in VA
1986 East Martello Towers Invitational, Key West, FL
1985 Lucky Street Gallery, Key West, FL, New Work, New Artists
First Invitational, Muscatine Art Center, Muscatine, IA
1984 17th Annual Jury Show, Muscatine Art Center, Muscatine, IA
1982 Gallery 72, Omaha, NE
1980 University of Iowa Museum of Art, Iowa City, IA
Honors
1984 Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, Artist in Residence
Juror's Choice Award, 17th Annual Jury Show, Muscatine Art Center
1983 Juror's Choice Award, 16th Annual Jury Show, Muscatine Art Center
Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, Artist in Residence
1982 Yaddo Fellow
Education
1979 M.F.A. University of Iowa
1978 M.A. University of Iowa
1973 B.S. University of Iowa