Thomas Allen, in essence, is a still life artist who through a very creative process disrupts the stillness. By carefully selecting from primarily vintage paperback novels and science journals, he brings two-dimensional images forward into three dimensional space. With simple lightning and the use of simple tools (i.e., scissors and razor-sharp knives), figures are cut out, bent and juxtapose in ways that present the tension and dynamics of staged drama. Other techniques are applied in achieving a pure sense of humor that also defy the original use of these materials and their ultimate destiny of being read once and retiring for eternity on the nearest bookshelf.
covers
10 Awesome New Yorker Covers
“Visualizing answers to artistic questions is a full-time job. I enjoy solving problems that challenge my powers of creativity. Most of my strongest images spring from dreams which have haunted me over the years. The Big City has been a recurring dream all my life, and fittingly, is the subject of much of my art. Being born and raised in Manhattan must have had something to do with it. Many of the New Yorker covers I’ve created were painted from vivid memories and urban epiphanies.” – Eric Drooker