Austin Thomas is an artist, educator, and curator whose multidisciplinary practice blends drawing, printmaking, and community engagement. She holds a BFA in Psychology and Women's Studies and an MA in Studio Arts from NYU. For over two decades, she has shaped the New York art scene through nonprofit spaces, galleries, and museums. Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally and has been reviewed in The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Paris Review, and Hyperallergic. It is included in collections such as Grinnell College, The Corcoran Legacy Collection, the Hoggard Wagner Collection, the JoAnn Gonzalez Hickey Collection, and New York Presbyterian Hospital.
In 2016, she completed a permanent public sculpture in Brooklyn through NYC’s Percent for Art Program. She has also completed commissions for the Public Art Fund and Grinnell College. Thomas has had solo exhibitions at Morgan Lehman Gallery, Municipal Bonds, and LAB Space and has been an artist-in-residence at Wave Hill, Guttenberg Arts, Smack Mellon, the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, and Bascom Lodge at Mount Greylock. In 2024, she reopened Pocket Utopia, her artist-run curatorial project dedicated to mentorship and community-building.
Thomas lives and works in New York City.
Artist Statement:
In the heart of the city's ceaseless rhythm, one finds a symphony of shapes within Thomas's work. Spanning intricate works on paper to expansive paintings, her art seeks to harmonize the inherent chaos of urban life with the simple clarity of geometric figures. Each piece is a navigation through the city's pulse, capturing not just architectural geometries but the vibrant energy that animates them. From soaring skylines to the labyrinthine dance of streets below, her art is a collage of perspectives, marrying sunny yellows, sky blues, and the earthy tones of the urban landscape to celebrate the city's diverse beauty.
As a practitioner deeply embedded in the New York scene, Thomas's work is not just an observation but a dialogue—a conversation with the city and its inhabitants. This 'being there' ethos underpins her creations, emphasizing urban life's mutable, multifaceted nature and the critical role of community and dialogue in the artistic exchange. Through her eyes, the city is not just a place but a living canvas, where every corner and every moment holds the potential for inspiration.