Michael Thomas
Michael N. Thomas, is a painter, designer, and mixed media artist hailing from New York City. Growing up in a multicultural household in Queens, New York, he began to use the city as his muse. The son of an Ecuadorian immigrant mother and an American free-spirited father, he learned the importance of creating art at a young age. Now a father himself, he speaks through each piece he creates.
Michael's use of color and line are both poetic and powerful. Growing up in the 80’s and 90’s, surrounded by the culture of New York City, inspired his abstract and textured style. Post-punk music, graffiti art, and Nuyorican poetry helped to shape his perspective. He also channels human existence into each piece leaving the viewer to question how art, culture, and life become one.
Michael relocated to Philadelphia in 1998 to attend art school and further his independent growth. He studied at the Art Institute of Philadelphia and private ateliers.
Michael maintains his primary studio, TigerHorseArt Studio, in Philadelphia. His work appears around the country and is held in many private collections.
A Gentle Stampede
For a long time, I believed that I needed to be intoxicated to create—that chaos fueled creativity, that the high was the spark. The truth is, I am a creative person, and drugs and alcohol only dulled that. Sobriety didn’t take my creativity away; it freed it. Art has become my anchor, a daily practice that keeps me grounded, present, and connected. In the same way that addiction isolated me, community pulls me back into the world. This piece reflects that. Each circle is an individual, unique but part of something larger. Alone, we drift. Together, we find strength, movement, and purpose. This painting is about unity, about finding hope in connection. It’s a reminder that we don’t have to go it alone. Sobriety, like art, is a practice—one that transforms struggle into something powerful, something triumphant.
Acrylic and oil on canvas
