Sarasota Artist Finds Creative Voice Late in Life - Sarasota Herald-Tribune - 8/6/06
Thomas Joyce will be showing new work at Greene Contemporary in Sarasota, Florida, during the month of August. An opening Friday, August 4, from 6 to 9 PM will preview the exhibition that will remain on view Saturday, August 5 through Tuesday August 29. Gallery hours are Wednesday through Saturday from 10 to 6pm or by appointment.
Joyce explores a variety of issues of abstraction in his work. He says it "all evolves on the canvas." He has "no pre-conceived ideas." Joyce "draws with paint" and trusts his intuition to guide his gesture. And while he strives for harmony and balance in his work he is not adverse to accepting discord as a predominant element. He "wants the work to look uncovered…as from an archaeological dig." Some of his paintings such as "Postcards #3," 2004, have the patina of an aged fresco. Sometimes Joyce builds up layers of painting over painting. His use of the technique of sgraffito where he rubs away parts of the surface layer to expose color in other layers beneath contributes to the finished paintings sometimes appearing older than they are. This is evident in "History Repeating Itself, 2005." Joyce "likes the paintings to reflect what has gone before."
There is a minimal quality to his work that seems informed by the restraint of certain abstract expressionist artists he admires including: Mark Rothko, Robert Motherwell and Antoni Tapies. He admires Goya for the "spirit of his personal life and work." Joyce spent some time in Mexico where he became interested in the work of Rufino Tamayo and David Alfaro Siquieros. Joyce understands the approach Tamayo has to making the paint appear to float on the surface of the canvas. Joyce also ascribes to the Asian belief that less is more and "what is not perfect has more value." "Postcards #4, 2004" includes many of the ideas that interest Joyce such as simplicity, revelation and the harmony of discord.
Joyce was born in Rochester, New York and he has spent most of his life traveling. Sharing the name of the distinguished author of "Ulysses" one might assume this artist has visited Ireland but he has not. And although he is three generations removed from the land, his spirit, sense of humor and love of story telling can transport you to the "Emerald isle" within moments of meeting him. His roots are there too in that some of his work demonstrates his empathy for the Irish.
Joyce was a 2002 recipient of a grant from the Pollock-Krasner Foundation in New York. Although he has painted all his life he did not begin exhibiting his work until after he moved to Florida in 1998. He has had one person exhibitions and been included in group shows throughout Florida including: Fusion Gallery in St. Petersburg, Elizabeth Rice Gallery, Poto Gallery and Mira Mar Gallery in Sarasota. Joyce maintains a studio in Sarasota and is represented exclusively by Greene Contemporary in Sarasota.