THOMAS PATHE
STATEMENT

The work is intended to be both strong and seductive, communicating on a gut level with the observer. The colors I paint with are common to the human experience and have an intimate relation with the body. Original inspirations arise from the colors of food, substances and products that I was raised on such as Cheetos, Fruit Loops, peanut butter, Pepto Bismol and calamine lotion. More natural colors like steak blood, butter and skin have also become paintings. When a hue is decided upon, the item (Fruit Loop, butter, etc.) is digitally scanned and translated into latex paint. Often the ultimate color is an amalgam of multiple scans of a given item (example: inside and outside of a black olive, clean and dirty eraser). The paint is thinned down into a transparent solution and then painted in layers with colors overlapped several times between coats of varnish.

The physical shape and presence is as crucial to the success of the work as it's layers and color. The supports are inverted boxes made of birch and poplar. I start with a square or rectangle shape, but round the corners, sanding and sculpting them by hand. The pieces are never finished with a machine or precise instrument which allows each one to have a unique physical presence. This produces a fresh organic read rather than conveying something rigid, sterile and lifeless. What is achieved overall is a subtle sculptural effect, with a surface finish that is neither high gloss nor matte. The end result is a dull sheen that offers a sense of ambiguity, strengthening the impact of the underlying layers of color.

Most important to this process is my strong conviction that intuition is integral in the development of the individual. The colors and their referents are key to my life experience. As such they are integrated within my subconscious and materialize in the work through the free play of intuition. The intended result is to create paintings that are simple, subtle and strong.