Patricia Thomas: Periodic Tales presents recent highlights from several ongoing bodies of work. In the large-scale figurative drawing, A Night in Tunisia, Thomas explores themes of social inequity, shelter, home, and domain. The new series of nuclear warning and biohazard symbols stemmed originally from Thomas’ interest in the trefoil form, which has been a focus for some time, but gained momentum after the nuclear disaster in Japan in 2011. Many of Thomas’ titles (e.g. Breach of Containment, Everything is on the Table) come from news and political conversations about nuclear power and weapons. These works therefore negotiate between material and process (manual application of charcoal to paper), elegant abstract forms (circles, loops, and grids), and culturally-loaded symbols of politically-charged technocratic power. In this way, Thomas uses the line to tell many tales: the record of the artist making her marks, the narrative told by the expressive line, and the political and economic stories that shape history.
Patricia Thomas moves between studios in Point Reyes Station and Oakland. She has an MFA from the University of Montana, Missoula, and has exhibited her work at venues including the SFMOMA Artists Gallery, Oakland Museum of California at City Center, Museum of Contemporary Art in Santa Rosa, Braunstein/Quay Gallery in San Francisco, and SLATE contemporary in Oakland.
Gallery Hours: Thur–Sat 12–5, Tue–Wed by appointment
