Thomas Kelly is an award winning, New Jersey based painter. Widely collected, his work has a signature style, which has its roots in Expressionism. His colorful, narrative, acrylic paintings on canvas often create a dialogue with the viewer. His deceptively simplistic paintings are both critically acclaimed and very approachable by everyday viewers. More than 250 of Kelly’s original paintings have been collected.
Artist Statement 2019
“My paintings are of common scenes, every day occurrences in which people struggle to establish and maintain relationships. It is these universal emotions and situations which most interest me.”
The paintings are acrylic on canvas, which lends to the way I work. The idea begins from a tiny sketch. That sketch will have the emotional feeling or gesture that first intrigued me.
I encourage viewers to participate in the narrative by placing themselves inside my scenes and characters. When asked by viewers if their interpretation is the true one, I say, ‘The paintings must stand on their own.’ I don’t tell them that their stories often rival my own.”
