Wind, Sunshine and Flowers
Alma W. Thomas
Contemporary Art
On View: American Art Galleries, 5th Floor, A Quiet Place
About this Brooklyn Icon
The Brooklyn Museum is commemorating its 200th anniversary by spotlighting 200 standout objects in its encyclopedic collection.
In 1972, Alma Thomas stated, “Color is life. Light is the mother of color. Light reveals to us the spirit and living soul of the world through colors.” The quote carries the spirit of Wind, Sunshine, and Flowers, one of Thomas’s colorful paintings that convey her love of nature. These abstract works are central to the artist’s oeuvre, and their gestural intensity made them iconic within modern art.
Thomas’s vertical brush marks reflect the patterns she saw in flower petals and dappled light, and the feeling she has described of wind against her skin during walks in Washington, DC. The design includes yellows representing the sun, blues as the wind, and greens, oranges, and red as the natural world. She shows landscapes can be multidimensional and experienced directly by anyone, without an intermediary.
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Gallery Label
For artist Alma W. Thomas, nature was a perfect muse. It was also a perfect escape. Captivated by the color of petals and the dance of light over moving leaves, Thomas found respite from the racial biases that shaped her experiences as a Black woman in the lush realm of natural phenomena. Of her vibrant palette she wrote, “Color is life. Light is the mother of color. Light reveals to us the spirit and living soul of the world through colors.”
The Brooklyn Museum is commemorating its 200th anniversary by spotlighting 200 standout objects in its encyclopedic collection.
In 1972, Alma Thomas stated, “Color is life. Light is the mother of color. Light reveals to us the spirit and living soul of the world through colors.” The quote carries the spirit of Wind, Sunshine, and Flowers, one of Thomas’s colorful paintings that convey her love of nature. These abstract works are central to the artist’s oeuvre, and their gestural intensity made them iconic within modern art.
Thomas’s vertical brush marks reflect the patterns she saw in flower petals and dappled light, and the feeling she has described of wind against her skin during walks in Washington, DC. The design includes yellows representing the sun, blues as the wind, and greens, oranges, and red as the natural world. She shows landscapes can be multidimensional and experienced directly by anyone, without an intermediary.
***
Gallery Label
For artist Alma W. Thomas, nature was a perfect muse. It was also a perfect escape. Captivated by the color of petals and the dance of light over moving leaves, Thomas found respite from the racial biases that shaped her experiences as a Black woman in the lush realm of natural phenomena. Of her vibrant palette she wrote, “Color is life. Light is the mother of color. Light reveals to us the spirit and living soul of the world through colors.”
MEDIUM
Acrylic on canvas
DATES
1968
DIMENSIONS
71 3/4 x 51 7/8 in. (182.2 x 131.8 cm) (show scale)
SIGNATURE
Lower right: "A W Thomas / '68"
INSCRIPTIONS
Verso labels:
1) "Martha Jackson Gallery/ 32 East 69 St, NY, 10021/ Alma Thomas/ Wind Sunshine and Flowers/ medium Ac/ c. size 72x52/ Date 1968"
2) "Corcoran Museum of Art/ Exhibition: Alma Thomas Retrospective/ Dates Sept 8- Oct 15, 1972/ Lender: The Artist"
COLLECTIONS
Contemporary Art
ACCESSION NUMBER
76.120
CREDIT LINE
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. David K. Anderson
PROVENANCE
Before 1976, acquired from the artist by Martha Jackson Gallery, New York, NY; October 20, 1976, purchased from Martha Jackson Gallery by David K. Anderson and Rebecca Reed Anderson (Mrs. David K. Anderson) for the Brooklyn Museum.
Provenance FAQ
EXHIBITIONS
MUSEUM LOCATION
This item is on view in American Art Galleries, 5th Floor, A Quiet Place
CAPTION
Alma W. Thomas (American, 1891–1978). Wind, Sunshine and Flowers, 1968. Acrylic on canvas, 71 3/4 x 51 7/8 in. (182.2 x 131.8 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. David K. Anderson, 76.120. © artist or artist's estate (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 76.120_PS2.jpg)
IMAGE
overall, 76.120_PS2.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2009
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RIGHTS STATEMENT
© Estate of Alma W. Thomas
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