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AOD:
Tell us a little
bit about your background?
Where are you from
originally?
TOMMY THOMPSON:
I now live in Florence,
Alabama, but I grew
up on a farm in
Mississippi. My
days were filled
with walks through
the woods, hills,
and hollows with
my father and uncle.
These experiences
have undoubtedly
influenced my attraction
to pastoral landscape
painting today.
I grew up watching
my former Merchant
Marine father paint
ships and landscapes
using colored pencils.
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Cold
Ride
Oil on canvas.
20" x 24" |
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AOD:
You have been illustrating
for over 30+ years.
Why do you prefer
painting over drawing?
And why landscapes
and portraits in particular?
TOMMY
THOMPSON:
Drawing is the basis
of landscape and portrait
painting; developing
drawing skills is
extremely helpful
when painting landscapes
or portraits. Drawing
is beneficial to achieve
correct placement
and proportion in
your paintings. Carrying
drawing to the next
level by adding color
and texture adds excitement
and interest. In painting,
artists can add the
passion or emotion
aspect that shows
creativity and imagination.
I enjoy landscapes,
first of all, because
I enjoy "plein
air" painting
due to the closeness
to nature that I encounter
outside, trying to
capture a scene on
canvas before the
light changes. On
site, I am affected
by the light, shadows,
atmosphere, weather,
the sights, sounds,
smells – all
of my senses are affected
by the experience
of painting outside.
If you can paint light,
you can paint anything.
Plein air painting
has opened up a whole
new world for me and
my wife. We have traveled
to Canada, Connecticut,
Maine, North Carolina,
Rhode Island, Tennessee,
Vermont, and Wyoming
to paint, in addition
to painting in Alabama.
In May, we will be
traveling to the Southwest
to paint in New Mexico
and Arizona.
As for portraits,
I have always been
a "people"
person. I am fascinated
with faces. Even when
I watch television
with my wife, I am
analyzing different
features of a person's
face whereas she is
concentrating on the
dialogue. I enjoy
sketching the "talking
heads" on television
talk shows, trying
to capture the likeness
of several at a time
as the show moves
from one participant
to another. A portrait
is the most difficult
type of painting to
do. You must not only
capture the likeness
of a model but attempt
to portray the personality
and mannerisms, as
well. |
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Emerald
Lake
Oil on canvas.
12" x 16" |
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AOD:
Your paintings use
a vast array of colors.
How did your painting
style develop?
How do you select
a feature, such as
a face, setting or
animal, to focus on
within your paintings?
TOMMY
THOMPSON:
My painting style
has developed by painting
almost every day over
the past 5 years.
When I started out,
I put far too little
paint on my palette
and then painted too
thinly because of
the fear of making
mistakes. After painting
hundreds of 6x8 and
8x10 panels on location,
most of which I discarded,
my self confidence
improved and I was
able to paint thicker
and more loosely and
to keep and sell more
of the works. I have
also taken numerous
workshops with master
painters like Kevin
Macpherson, Ken Auster,
Kenn Backhaus, Roger
Dale Brown, John Budicin,
Scott Christensen,
Paula Frizbe, Ned
Mueller, Michael Shane
Neal, Jason Saunders,
and Dawn Whitelaw.
Today, all of my paintings
are done using a limited
palette of cadmium
red light, cadmium
yellow light, ultramarine
blue, transparent
oxide red, alizarin
crimson, and titanium
white. By using a
limited palette I
can achieve harmony
in a painting almost
automatically because
all of my colors are
produced by mixing
the primary colors.
I can mix almost any
color that I want
with these few colors.
Remember your color
printer has only three
colors of ink plus
black to obtain all
of the colors that
you print on your
printer.
I determine the object
(or focal point) based
on what will make
the best composition
for the painting.
I look for light effects
on objects. I am also
looking for something
that inspires me;
otherwise I am wasting
my time – there
will be no creativity
or passion involved
if I am not inspired. |
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Grazing
with a View
Oil on canvas.
11" x 14" |
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AOD:
What materials do
you use to produce
your work?
TOMMY THOMPSON:
As I mentioned above,
I use a limited palette
of the primary oil
colors. Using a palette
knife and an assortment
of sizes in flats,
brights, and filbert
bristle brushes, I
paint wet-into-wet.
I have also found
that a variety of
sizes of Langnickel
5590 Royal Sable brushes
are useful for architectural
work and blending.
I prefer to paint
on canvas panels for
my plein air work,
but in the studio,
I use stretched canvas.
I prefer to use odorless
Gamblin Gamsol and
tissues to clean my
brushes as I paint.
At the end of the
day I wash my brushes
using Marvelous Marianne's
Savvy Hand and Brush
organic cleaner. To
avoid cracking of
the paint, I coat
my paintings with
Dammar varnish either
within one month of
completing my paintings
or one year later
(as recommended on
page 22 of Carlson's
Guide to Landscape
Painting by John
F. Carlson). For my
plein air painting,
I use an Open Box
M as my easel. In
the studio, I use
a large easel that
I adapted using my
sturdy professional
photography tripod.
My studio palette
is one that I manufactured
using ideas gathered
from Richard Schmid's
video. |
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Horses
of the Tetons
Oil on canvas.
24" x 36" |
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AOD:
Take us through
the process of one
of your ‘favorite’
paintings. (From
idea, sketches,
etc.)
What inspires you
and how do you title
each piece?
TOMMY THOMPSON:
The key for my inspiration
has to be the effects
of light on objects,
animals, or people.
To create the studio
painting, "Horses
of the Tetons,"
I searched through
my personal digital
photos on my computer
to locate an appropriate
mountain scene from
Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
(In my former life
I attended Kodak's
Professional Photography
School in Winona,
Indiana). After
I had selected the
overall scene, I
found a photo that
I had taken of some
horses in that area.
Using PhotoShop
I placed the horses
in the mountain
scene at an appropriate
angle and location.
I always determine
the direction of
the light first;
this is very important.
Using PhotoShop
I enhanced the light
on the "focal
point" horse
to agree with the
direction of the
light on the trees.
This composite photo
became my "motif"
to translate into
oil. I believe the
best titles of paintings
are those that I
arrive at spontaneously.
Usually as I paint,
the title will suddenly
become apparent
to me. |
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Lake
Louise, Canada
Oil on canvas.
12" x 16"
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AOD:
How do you keep yourself
motivated and interested
in painting?
Do most, if not all,
of your artworks reflect
your mood at the time
of creation?
TOMMY THOMPSON:
I have numerous videos
by Richard Schmid,
Kevin Macpherson,
Scott Christensen,
and others that spark
my interest and motivate
me to press on. I
also gain much inspiration
from talking with
other artists, attending
their exhibitions,
and visiting art museums
on all of our travels
around the country.
Yes, my mood affects
my paintings. As Kevin
Macpherson says, "Sometimes
you may as well just
go to a movie if you
are not inspired to
paint that day."
If it happens to be
a very gray day, I
cannot paint outside;
I must have light
to be inspired. |
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Morning
at Foggy Bottom
Oil
on canvas.
20" x 24" |
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AOD:
Is there
any advice you'd give
to those aspiring
to be artists?
TOMMY THOMPSON:
Paint every
day. Don't allow yourself
to become discouraged.
Don't worry about
failed paintings;
they happen to the
best of us.
"Creativity is
allowing yourself
to make mistakes;
art is knowing which
ones to keep."
– Sam Scott |
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Sunday
at Grandpa's
Oil
on canvas.
20" x 24" |
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AOD:
Any art showings you
would like to share
with us?
TOMMY THOMPSON:
Art at the Gardens:
A Solo Exhibition
by Tommy Thompson
March 1 – April
26, 2008
Birmingham Botanical
Gardens
Birmingham, Alabama
A Study in Light and
Shadows: A Solo Exhibition
by Tommy Thompson
June 1-30, 2008
Sponsored by the Mountain
Valley Arts Council
Guntersville, Alabama |
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December
Light
Oil
on canvas.
16" x 20"
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