"Working with geometric shapes and a limited palette, I want the ink to be like writing on the page of my own vernacular, describing night, nature, constellations, the enormity of the physical world, and the universe above. I look at the world around me as a creative space, listening, and observing. My goal is to make a visual language, while I want the viewer to insert their narrative into my work. I am inspired by the urban environment, particularly architecture and quotidian objects. I meditate a lot; therefore, my work is a practice of clarity. I love circles and distinctive geometric shapes, chance encounters, and repetition."—Austin Thomas
Municipal Bonds is delighted to announce Austin Thomas: In Constellation, an online exclusive exhibition of celestial monoprints, July 15 to September 30, 2020.
Initially, this exhibition’s purpose was an invitation to a respite, a moment of levity and meditation. Additionally, it has come to represent a conversation, between artist and gallery during the past months, about giving—we believe art and giving go hand-in-hand. It is our constellation: making and giving, presenting and representing. This exhibition is aligned with Thomas and Municipal Bonds’ partnership in ongoing fundraising. 20% of every sale will be donated to the pop-up food pantry organized by La Jornada and Together We Can Food Pantry at the Queens Museum.
Thomas’ monoprints convey a sense of buoyancy and hope. They are also rooted in the values of her environmental activism, using borrowed tools and recycling found materials, and furthered by her commitment to support social causes through her art. Thomas is an artist citizen: making, curating, teaching, helping others, and donating—she concentrates on contributing to the community around her.
Using concepts of curve and surface, Thomas’ work is graphically composed with unique impressions—clustered, overlapping, translucent—onto vintage papers. Thomas has developed a form of monoprinting that employs ghost marking, in which she prints several times on the same piece of found paper: book covers and pages, ledger sheets, and loose-leaf notebooks. Often marked by bold color, each spatial relationship plays with chance, shape, and the distinctive qualities of the material page. The resulting images combine spontaneity and precision, referring to modernist styles including Russian Constructivism, Minimalism, and Color Field painting.
