I'm Tom,
I have been an artist for as long as I can remember.
For almost 70 years, I have enjoyed creating art in many media; from small pen and ink drawings to larger-than-life chainsaw carvings. I love to express myself in creating art in any form from whatever materials are available at the time. My life on our farm keeps me very active, and I spend mornings keeping up with the farm work. I spend most afternoons in my studio, creating oil on canvas paintings. I always enjoy working with my hands and various tools, and love to meet and speak in-person with people.
So far, I have been able to avoid the digital world. I do not type, have never used a compurer, and rarely even use a phone. Therefore, my wife, Karen, is connecting me to the modern world and we will work together to present my collection of artwork. We hope you will enjoy my art.
Hi, I'm Karen, Tom and I have known each other since childhood, and we have been married for decades. I continue to be impressed with his talent, even after all these years,and I am happy to help with this project.
EAST COAST. NEW YORK: LONG ISLAND to MANHATTAN
Tom was a commercial artist for a while, but found that he preferred to express himself artistically in a way that was authentic; based on his own perceptions and emotions. His interest in art drew us to Europe, where we enjoyed the art of the great masters, in many museums, outdoor street sculptures, and renaissance architecture. In the 60's, we moved to Manhattan where he studied at the Art Students League, and shared a studio at the corner of Grand and Mulberry with artist and Art History professor at St. John's University, Marietta Warner Siegel, PhD. Later, he built a "Artist in Residence" studio and home space for us downtown, at Chambers and Church, in the area now known as "SoHo". He also enjoyed his job, working at the Museum of Modern Art. He met many other artists, and became an assistant for Jerry Jofen, helping him with his adventurous experimental underground filmmaking career.
We remained close friends with his high school art teachers who always encouraged his creativity. They advised us to find a place where he could continue to create art freely, and develop his own expressive individual style. We took this advice seriously, and headed west.
WEST COAST. CALIFORNIA
WWEST COAST.
We ended up in rural northern California in 1971, We started a family and a farm in the wilderness of the "Lost Coast" of Northern California, near the King Range Conservation Area. Our goal was to become self sufficient by farming, using permaculture and organic methods. We developed a homestead, raised animals, planted orchards and gardens, and have become a legal California cannabis cultivation facility. We have two children, now grown adults with families and homes of their own. They were a big part of our unusual rustic, off-grid, lifestyle of very few modern conveniences, and a lot of hard work. Through the years, Tom was able to find ways to create, and document our lives, and the beauty of the nature that surrounds us, through art..
ARTIST and FARMER
Tom and I still live on our farm, and he generally works outside in the mornings to maintain our rural home. Every season has its demands; cultivating, pruning fruit trees, picking fruit, cutting and splitting firewood, cutting and burning brush, stream management, and maintaining our road. In most afternoons, he spends time in his studio creating art; now he is working on oil on canvas paintings. He feels a close connection with nature, and his art is inspired by the beauty of the wilderness. It is spontaneous and emotional, and I hope you will enjoy these colorful expressions of our world as he sees it, and join him on his lifelong artistic journey. Thank you for your interest.
