Tom is a self-taught artist who grew up in Inverness, California and began drawing as a child. He picked up the paintbrush for the first time in his early 20s, creating his first West Marin Landscape of Chicken Ranch Beach. By his late 20s, he opened West Marin Fitness in Point Reyes, which also showcased his early work. He moved to Los Angeles in his mid-30s and began to create bodies of work that includes fine art, contemporary art and pop art.
One of his first series, “Sumo Surfer”, blends the reality of a childhood trip to Mexico with his father in a classic VW Van, with an imagined gang of traveling, surfing, sumo wrestlers. Iconography from the series was used in a limited edition clothing line, and buyers celebrated the spirit of the series by sending back pictures of themselves wearing the clothes in Japan, England, Dubai and Australia to name a few.
At Tom’s L.A. art shows, landscapes of West Marin always found wall space among the night time streetscapes of L.A. and high-energy portraits of local characters. His work reflects the contrast of the two places he calls home. His L.A. paintings show the city’s relentless, seductive pop culture energy, but they also reflect on the city’s loneliness, and secret pockets of tranquility. In contrast, his West Marin landscapes embody the endless calm, quiet natural beauty that never ceases to inspire this home grown native. His paintings reveal a Returned Local’s new-found appreciation for the town’s soul, and the permanence of its impact on him as an artist.