Power Struggle 2002

Second semester freshman year I took a still life in oil painting course and loved it right off the bat. I learned a lot that semester, didn't know what the hell a diptych was until then! I'll never forget when my professor explained why there had to be a reason for the spacing between the two halves of the painting. In Power Struggle, I began to think about our use of electricity when using a little elbow grease can do the job just fine. The "missing" fork protecting the energy source is in the kitchen being used to stir cake mix while the egg beater sits hopelessly trying to reach the power with it's cord.

Oil on Board 48"x12"
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My Grand Parent's Still Life 2001

This series of paintings were an assignment in my foundations painting class freshman year at MECA. My professor directed me to open up as an artist, explore the different ways to apply the paint. #3 was painted with a five foot long brush!

left to right, top to bottom-
#1 Oil on Canvas 18"x24" 400.
#2 Oil on Canvas 14"x20" 350.
#3 Oil on Canvas 22"x22" Sold
#4 Oil on Linen 18"x26" 375.
#5 Oil on Canvas 20"x16" 375.

Snow Fields 2001

This painting followed Portland, Maine. At the start of my college career I located a bin where the "unwanted" art supplies were dropped off. Several times I would find canvases or other surfaces to paint on. When I found this panel I realized it was the first panel I would ever paint on. The brush reacted differently in a nice way, the brush stokes came out long and smooth. Trying to cover previous marks with white paint, a snowy imagined field was created.

Oil on Panel 30"x40"
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Downtown 2004

Though this painting was done a little later, (2004) I wanted to place it above Portland, Maine. Downtown took a year to paint and the piece came together when I remembered adding an airplane to the bottom of the Portland painting. I liked the thought of an airplane low in the sky ready for landing bringing visitors to an exciting location. Downtown is a reverse perspective cityscape where the foreground is further from the viewers eye and the background becomes the foreground.

Oil on Canvas 32"x36"
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Portland, Maine 2001

This painting was a turning point. Working from just a city map and walking around Portland taking notes I imagined and visualized how the city appeared. It's not an exact representation of the city of Portland, yet my appreciation of an amazing city. This process allowed me to loosen up as a painter, I told myself, I'm not a camera.

Oil on Canvas 36"x32"
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Lord Fishy Fishie's Aquarium Circus 2001

A friend of mine wanted me to capture his Beta fish, Lord Fishy Fishy in a painting. The elephant bookend behind the fish bowl was painted in first and when my friend saw the progress he commented, "that's an elephant?!" I told him to hang in there, it's not finished. When it was complete I realized that Lord Fishy Fishy appears to be shooting out of the elephants mouth like a circus cannon.

Oil on Canvas 16"x12"
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Peak 2000

I worked on Peak while I was painting Autumn Path. I found the juxtaposition of thunderstorm clouds and the fall foliage to be a nice pairing. The painting fell onto a corner of a cement block creating a crack in the shape of a Moon. A little more paint and the Moon was born!

Oil on Canvas 36"x24"
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Autumn Path 2000

I finally was able to set up a little painting area in the house I was sharing with five roommates and non stop guests. When I did, I was stumped on what to do. I let my imagination take flight and Autumn Path was the beginning of the imagined landscapes.

oil on canvas 16"x20"
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Echo 1998

Echo is one of those paintings that always brings a smile to my face. The puppy's name is Echo and she was my roommate's new family member. One day I took her for a walk and along a stream bed I found a blank canvas. A mud blob on it became my paint and I finger painted a couple of lines that resembled Echo looking down at the ground. When we arrived home I noticed that a water stain was in the shape a piano suited for a young pup!

oil on canvas 9"x12"
N.F.S.

Lupines 1999

Lupines was a drawing for a painting that I never got a chance to do, so far anyway. This piece is the third or forth drawing in a sketch book that I purchased after a few years of not producing a lot of work. This drawing got me going again.

Colored Pencil 9"x12"
N.F.S.

Bob Marley Painting 1993

This painting was one a final project I did in High School. I remember enjoying the process of designing the layout of separate images, creating a font, and designing a boarder. It may be the last piece I designed outside the computer.

Acrylic on board 14"x18"
N.F.S.

Figure Sketch 1993

This figure drawing was done in just a minute or so straight from my imagination. The pen managed to nearly draw the image it's self.

Ink on Paper 2"x5"
N.F.S.

Thomas Cook
1993 to 2009, and the pile of art that has piled up.

I remember being very young when a friend of my family told me that I someday would become an artist. I loved to make things and never stopped, until I decided to go to Mechanical Engineering College when my creative thoughts where lost behind tolerances and mathematic formulas. To be honest, back then I had no idea what I wanted to be, and for years I punched the clock forty hours a week in a warehouse job. I was lucky though, I was surrounded amongst many incredible local artisans. My sketch book would slowly be open more and the creative process woke up from years of napping. In 2001 my twin brother Andrew and I changed our direction in life to begin careers in the art world. Maine College of Art showed us the way. I majored in painting yet always wanted to get my thoughts and hands in every medium I could. From print to sculpture, painting to graphic design, I want to share with all of you all the different things that I've created over the years. Over the next several months I'll be adding work from my past, if the work is for sale you should buy it, just kidding, I'll post the price and or Not For Sale. I'll do my best to put them in order from oldest to most recent, however I keep finding older work in the pile of piles! Enjoy!
-thomas