Samantha Thomas’ artistic practice is unique and idiosyncratic. Restraining herself to a palette of raw canvas, thread and acrylic paint, Thomas’ work explores the play between common studio materials and abstraction. Jagged extrusions, folded thresholds and frenetically woven strands of thread transform her canvases into paintings that are, at once, physical, architectural and sculptural. While each piece defies the flatness of the canvas, her work still speaks to the language and legacy of painting and drawing.
About
Images
![This image depicts an artwork by Samantha Thomas titled "Incendiaria." This artwork was created in 2022 and measures 58 ¹⁄₄" x 42" x 2 ¹⁄₂" [HxWxD] (147.96 x 106.68 x 6.35 cm). Its medium is Acrylic, linen, and thread on canvas.](https://anatebgi.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Samantha-Thomas_ST1127_1667507455.jpg)
Samantha Thomas
Incendiaria, 2022
Incendiaria, 2022
![This image depicts an artwork by Samantha Thomas titled "Quema." This artwork was created in 2021 and measures 58" x 56 ¹⁄₄" x 2 ¹⁄₂" [HxWxD] (147.32 x 142.88 x 6.35 cm). Its medium is Acrylic, thread and linen on canvas, framed.](https://anatebgi.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Samantha-Thomas_ST1134_1667507459.jpg)
Samantha Thomas
Quema, 2021
Quema, 2021
Samantha Thomas
Sea Holly, 2022
Sea Holly, 2022
Samantha Thomas
Blossom, 2020
Acrylic on canvas on panel
Diameter 32 inches / 81.3 cm
Blossom, 2020
Acrylic on canvas on panel
Diameter 32 inches / 81.3 cm
![This image depicts an artwork by Samantha Thomas titled "Texture Study." This artwork was created in 2020 and measures 20" x 16" [HxW] (50.8 x 40.64 cm). Its medium is Acrylic on canvas.](https://anatebgi.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Samantha-Thomas_ST1094_1667507469.jpg)
Samantha Thomas
Texture Study, 2020
Texture Study, 2020
Samantha Thomas
Regeneration, 2020
Acrylic on canvas on panel
Diameter 37.5 inches / 95.3 cm
Regeneration, 2020
Acrylic on canvas on panel
Diameter 37.5 inches / 95.3 cm
Samantha Thomas
California Poppy, 2019
Acrylic on canvas
37 x 37 inches / 94 x 94 cm
California Poppy, 2019
Acrylic on canvas
37 x 37 inches / 94 x 94 cm
Samantha Thomas
Pink Intruder, 2018
Acrylic on canvas
Diameter 79 inches / 175.3 cm
Pink Intruder, 2018
Acrylic on canvas
Diameter 79 inches / 175.3 cm
![This image depicts an artwork by Samantha Thomas titled "Sunburst." This artwork was created in 2019 and measures 20" x 16" x 4" [HxWxD] (50.8 x 40.64 x 10.16 cm). Its medium is Acrylic on canvas, stacked.](https://anatebgi.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Samantha-Thomas_ST1081_1667507730.jpg)
Samantha Thomas
Sunburst, 2019
Sunburst, 2019
Samantha Thomas
Texture Study, 2019
Acrylic on canvas, stacked
20 x 16 inches / 50.8 x 40.6 cm
Texture Study, 2019
Acrylic on canvas, stacked
20 x 16 inches / 50.8 x 40.6 cm
Samantha Thomas
Untitled (Fleur), 2019
Acrylic on canvas,
Diameter 22 inches / 55.9 cm
Untitled (Fleur), 2019
Acrylic on canvas,
Diameter 22 inches / 55.9 cm
Samantha Thomas
Complex Systems, 2019
Acrylic and thread on canvas
59.8 x 84 inches / 151.8 x 213.4 cm
Complex Systems, 2019
Acrylic and thread on canvas
59.8 x 84 inches / 151.8 x 213.4 cm
Samantha Thomas
Continental Drift #5, 2018
Acrylic, oil, thread, and linen on canvas,
42 x 36 inches / 106.7 x 91.4 cm
Continental Drift #5, 2018
Acrylic, oil, thread, and linen on canvas,
42 x 36 inches / 106.7 x 91.4 cm
Samantha Thomas
Texture Study, 2017
Acrylic, rope on canvas
22 x 20 x 5 inches / 55.9 x 50.8 x 12.7 cm
Texture Study, 2017
Acrylic, rope on canvas
22 x 20 x 5 inches / 55.9 x 50.8 x 12.7 cm
Samantha Thomas
Continental Drift #3, 2017
Acrylic, thread on linen 12 x 9 1/2 inches / 30.5 x 24.1 cm
Continental Drift #3, 2017
Acrylic, thread on linen 12 x 9 1/2 inches / 30.5 x 24.1 cm
Samantha Thomas
Texture Study, 2017
Acrylic on canvas 12 1/2 x 9 1/2 x 3 inches / 31.8 x 24.1 x 7.6 cm
Texture Study, 2017
Acrylic on canvas 12 1/2 x 9 1/2 x 3 inches / 31.8 x 24.1 x 7.6 cm
Samantha Thomas
Blood Orange, 2017
Acrylic on canvas 20 x 16 inches / 50.8 x 40.6 cm
Blood Orange, 2017
Acrylic on canvas 20 x 16 inches / 50.8 x 40.6 cm
Samantha Thomas
Texture Study, 2017
Thread and acrylic on canvas
20 x 13 inches / 50.8 x 30.5 cm
Texture Study, 2017
Thread and acrylic on canvas
20 x 13 inches / 50.8 x 30.5 cm
Samantha Thomas
Continental Drift #4 , 2017
Acrylic, oil, thread, and linen on canvas, framed
50 x 40 inches / 127 x 101.6 cm
Continental Drift #4 , 2017
Acrylic, oil, thread, and linen on canvas, framed
50 x 40 inches / 127 x 101.6 cm
Samantha Thomas
Texture Study, 2017
Acrylic on burlap
14 x 11 inches / 35.6 x 27.9 cm
Texture Study, 2017
Acrylic on burlap
14 x 11 inches / 35.6 x 27.9 cm
Samantha Thomas
Continental Drift #2 , 2017
Linen, thread, acrylic and oil on canvas 46 x 38 inches / 116.8 x 96.5 cm
Continental Drift #2 , 2017
Linen, thread, acrylic and oil on canvas 46 x 38 inches / 116.8 x 96.5 cm
Samantha Thomas
Cartography #7 , 2017
Linen, thread, and acrylic on canvas 60 x 75 inches / 152.4 x 190.5 cm
Cartography #7 , 2017
Linen, thread, and acrylic on canvas 60 x 75 inches / 152.4 x 190.5 cm
Samantha Thomas
Landscapification #17 , 2016
Acrylic, thread and charcoal on canvas over panel 48 x 34 inches / 121.9 x 86.4 cm
Landscapification #17 , 2016
Acrylic, thread and charcoal on canvas over panel 48 x 34 inches / 121.9 x 86.4 cm
Samantha Thomas
Spatial Relation, 2015 – 2016
Acrylic on Linen 72 x 48 inches / 182.9 x 121.9 cm
Spatial Relation, 2015 – 2016
Acrylic on Linen 72 x 48 inches / 182.9 x 121.9 cm
Samantha Thomas
Complex Systems of Communication, Installation view, 2016
Complex Systems of Communication, Installation view, 2016
Samantha Thomas
Complex Systems of Communication, Installation view, 2016
Complex Systems of Communication, Installation view, 2016
Samantha Thomas
Complex Systems of Communication, Installation view, 2016
Complex Systems of Communication, Installation view, 2016
Samantha Thomas
Complex Systems of Communication, Installation view, 2016
Complex Systems of Communication, Installation view, 2016
Samantha Thomas
Cartography #1 (NS), 2016
Acrylic, thread, burlap and canvas 10 x 8 inches / 25.4 x 20.3 cm
Cartography #1 (NS), 2016
Acrylic, thread, burlap and canvas 10 x 8 inches / 25.4 x 20.3 cm
Samantha Thomas
Cartography #6, 2016
Thread, acrylic and linen on canvas 60 x 84 inches / 152.4 x 213.4 cm
Cartography #6, 2016
Thread, acrylic and linen on canvas 60 x 84 inches / 152.4 x 213.4 cm
Samantha Thomas
Untitled, 2016
Acrylic, thread and canvas
44 1/2 x 44 1/2 inches / 113 x 113 cm
Untitled, 2016
Acrylic, thread and canvas
44 1/2 x 44 1/2 inches / 113 x 113 cm
Samantha Thomas
Complex Systems #4, 2016
Acrylic and thread on canvas, framed 60 x 90 inches / 152.4 x 228.6 cm
Complex Systems #4, 2016
Acrylic and thread on canvas, framed 60 x 90 inches / 152.4 x 228.6 cm
Samantha Thomas
LANDSCAPIFICATION #6, 2012-2013
Thread on canvas 72 1/2 x 60 x 4 1/2 inches / 184.2 x 152.4 x 11.4 cm
LANDSCAPIFICATION #6, 2012-2013
Thread on canvas 72 1/2 x 60 x 4 1/2 inches / 184.2 x 152.4 x 11.4 cm
Samantha Thomas
LANDSCAPIFICATION #16, 2015
Acrylic, thread and charcoal on canvas over panel 44 x 34 inches / 111.8 x 86.4 cm
LANDSCAPIFICATION #16, 2015
Acrylic, thread and charcoal on canvas over panel 44 x 34 inches / 111.8 x 86.4 cm
Samantha Thomas
Somewhere in Between, 2015
Acrylic and thread on canvas over panel 53 x 49 x 5 1/2 inches / 134.6 x 124.5 x 14 cm
Somewhere in Between, 2015
Acrylic and thread on canvas over panel 53 x 49 x 5 1/2 inches / 134.6 x 124.5 x 14 cm
Samantha Thomas
Untitled (Vortex) #1
Acrylic, oil and thread on canvas 48 x 36 x 5 inches / 121.9 x 116.8 x 12.7 cm
Untitled (Vortex) #1
Acrylic, oil and thread on canvas 48 x 36 x 5 inches / 121.9 x 116.8 x 12.7 cm
Samantha Thomas
Complex Systems #8, 2014-2015
Thread, acrylic, on canvas
44 x 33 inches / 111.8 x 83.8 cm
Complex Systems #8, 2014-2015
Thread, acrylic, on canvas
44 x 33 inches / 111.8 x 83.8 cm
Samantha Thomas
Complex Systems #5, 2014-2015
Acrylic and thread on canvas 55 x 46 inches / 139.7 x 116.8 cm
Complex Systems #5, 2014-2015
Acrylic and thread on canvas 55 x 46 inches / 139.7 x 116.8 cm
Samantha Thomas
Installation view at RH Contemporary Art, 2013
Installation view at RH Contemporary Art, 2013
Samantha Thomas
Texture/Parameter, Installation view at LAXART, 2013
Texture/Parameter, Installation view at LAXART, 2013
Exhibitions
If you forget my name, You will go astray
Good Company: The Remix
Good Company: Pt. 1
Staycation
Anat Ebgi | Minnesota Street Project
Samantha Thomas: Complex Systems of Communication
News
The Rebirth of Lesbian Cool | Samantha Thomas
"I was grooming myself to be a professional golfer and was on a golf scholarship at the University of Tulsa, [No. 2 in NCAA Division 1 at the time], when I took a still life drawing class, influenced by my roommate. I quit my scholarship and moved to New York to pursue art. I lasted a winter and immediately moved out west." —Samantha Thomas
Culture Trip, October 2018
Review: Folded, pleated, burned, torn: Artist Samantha Thomas’ tactile webs of intrigue
Samantha Thomas’ fabric wall works at the L.A. gallery Anat Ebgi are steeped in art history. Their folded, stitched and cut surfaces evoke all manner of abstraction, from the sliced canvases of Lucio Fontana to the gestural webs of Jackson Pollack and the evocative volumes of Eva Hesse. —Sharon Mizota
LA Times, April 2016
Curated Solutions
Castaño “fell in love with Samantha Thomas’ work” during the opening of the RH Contemporary Art gallery in New York. Her “use of 3D is juxtaposed with the transitional and traditional elements of the room,” explains Claire Eeles, vice president of RH Contract. “Thomas’ work is inspired by the freeways and terrain of Los Angeles’ landscape but also speaks to San Francisco’s ever-changing social landscapes,” adds Eeles. —Alissa Ponchione
Hospitality Design Magazine, December 2014
Samantha Thomas- Optic Textures
Thomas explores modern urbanism and cities in her series for RH Contemporary Art called “Landscapification.” She distorts and plays with canvas, paint, enamel, sandpaper, and thread to create an abstract topographical map of Los Angeles. —Linda Cleary
Day of the Artist, July 2014
5 Emerging Artists From RH Contemporary Art
Thomas explores modern urbanism and cities in her series for RH Contemporary Art called "Landscapification." She distorts and plays with canvas, paint, enamel, sandpaper, and thread to create an abstract topographical map of Los Angeles. —Raka Sen
Complex, November 2013
Samantha Thomas
Thomas seems to understand that exploring abstraction’s parameters is less about interdicting the possibilities of canvas than marshaling its excesses. —Catherine Damman
Art in America, October 2013
A Home Furnishings Visionary Takes On High Culture
Come Nov. 9, in a six-story, 28,000-square-foot industrial building in Chelsea, RH Contemporary Art will open its inaugural exhibition with five concurrent solo shows from Nathan Baker, Toby Christian, Peter Demos, Samantha Thomas and Natasha Wheat, all emerging artists for a debut exhibit. —Alice Gregory
The New York Times, October 2013
Samantha Thomas
Sewing would be the constant in my practice; since it is so versatile it can act as a binding device, a line, etc. Interestingly, I don’t come from a sewing background— it’s just something I began to do to explore other ways of making line. —Samantha Thomas
In The Make, September 2013CV
Samantha Thomas
- 1980
- Born in McAllen, Texas.
- Lives and works in Los Angeles, CA.
Education
- 2004
- BFA Art Center College of Design, Pasadena, CA
Solo Exhibitions
- 2024
- Solo, Anat Ebgi, Los Angeles, CA (forthcoming)
- 2016
- Complex Systems of Communication, Anat Ebgi, Los Angeles, CA
- 2014
- LANDSCAPIFICATION, RH Contemporary, New York, NY
- 2013
- Texture/Parameter, LAXART, Los Angeles, CA
- 2007
- Preview, Gehry Partners, Los Angeles, CA
- Multipliticies, Mike Weiss Gallery, New York, NY
- New Gallery, Thom Andriola, Houston, TX
- 2005
- Samantha Thomas, Patricia Faure Gallery, Santa Monica, CA
Selected Group Exhibitions
- 2022
- If you forget my name, You shall go astray, Anat Ebgi, Los Angeles, CA
- 2021
- Good Company: The Remix, Anat Ebgi, Los Angeles, CA
- 2020
- Staycation, Anat Ebgi, Los Angeles, CA
- The Conversation, Anat Ebgi at Minnesota Street Project, San Francisco, CA
- 2018
- Pussy, King of Pirates, Maccarone, Los Angeles, CA
- 2015
- Salon NO.13, Marine Projects, Venice, CA
- 2013
- Landscape, Fredric Snitzer Gallery, Miami, FL
- 2012
- MOCA Fresh, MOCA, Los Angeles, CA
- Ghost Town, L&M Arts, Venice, CA
- 2011
- THE DELTA, curated by Alexys Schwartz, Alexys Schwartz Projects, Los Angeles, CA
- Speculative Materialism, D-block projects, Long Beach, CA
- 2010
- Venice Artists, Here Is Elsewhere Gallery, Pacific Design Center, Los Angeles, CA
- 2009
- Uli and Lucrecia's lustige gruppenausstellung MIT party, Five Thirty Three, Los Angeles, CA
- 2008
- 5 Year Anniversary Show, Mike Weiss Gallery, New York, NY
- Ebb and Flow, Mike Weiss Gallery, New York, NY
- 2006
- LA Remix, Galerie Dominique Fiat, Paris, FR
- LA Now, Galerie Dominique Fiat, Paris, FR
- (Keep Feeling) Fascination, curated by Julie Joyce, The Luckman Fine Arts Complex, LA, CA
- 2005
- Pink, Patricia Faure Gallery, Santa Monica, CA
Residencies
- 2018
- After & Again, Oaxaca, Mexico
Selected Press
- 2016
- Sharon Mizota, “Folded, pleated, burned, torn: Artist Samantha Thomas’ tactile webs of intrigue,” Los Angeles Times, April 4, 2016.
- Lisa Adams, “Art Los Angeles Contemporary 2016: Through the Eyes of a Painter,” Huffington Post, January 29, 2016. (Link)
- 2015
- Daniel Cabrera, “Who is Samantha Thomas?,” Bustle, September 14, 2014.
- 2014
- Elizabeth Weinberg, “California Dreamin’”, Baku Magazine, Autumn 2014.
- “Inaugural exhibitions: 9 Nov 2013 — 25 Jan 2014 at RH Contemporary Art in New York, United States,” Wall Street International, November 2014.
- 2013
- Catherine Damman, “Samantha Thomas at LAXART,” Art in America, November 22, 2013.
- Raka Sen, “5 Emerging Artists From RH Contemporary Art,” Complex, November 9, 2013. (Link)
- Fan Zhong, “Restoration Hardware Gets Contemporary,” W Magazine, November 7, 2013. (Link)
- “Q&A with Artist Samantha Thomas,” New York Spaces, Autumn 2013.
- Sam Cochran, “RH Contemporary Art Gallery Opens in New York,” Architectural Digest, October 31, 2013.
- Dawn Chan, “Restoration Hardware’s Next Move? A Quarterly Journal for Art Lovers,” T Magazine, October 30, 2013.
- Alice Gregory, “A Home Furnishings Visionary Takes On High Culture,” T Magazine, October 3, 2013.
- Nikki Grattan, “Samantha Thomas,” In the Make, September 2013.
- Johnie Gall, “Venice Beach Surfer Pushes Boundaries of Traditional Canvas Art,” Foam Magazine, September 19, 2013.
- 2011
- Reggie Casagrande, “State of Mind: Samantha Thomas, LipstickTracez, August 19, 2011.