It’s not surprising to imagine the sound of rustling leaves or sense a cool breeze at dusk while looking at the colorful and vibrant paintings by Thomas White Jr.
White, a Croton-on-Hudson resident, said he started drawing pictures at five years old in Tuscaloosa, Ala. where he was born and raised.
“My parents encouraged me and I started with colored pencils my mother had brought me,” White said. “She saw how good I was doing, which led to me painting with water colors.”
His work is on view at the John C. Hart Memorial Library in Shrub Oak throughout the month of March in the exhibition “Abstraction: A Collection of Paintings.”
When White took art courses in high school, he found at times that words or music would come to him when he painted. The creative ideas would not only inform his paintings but move him to write poetry and compose music later in life.
“I could be painting something and suddenly a poem or music comes into my head,” he noted. “Paintings, music and words seem intertwined. Growing up there was always music in my household, lots of jazz, R&B and gospel.”
White, who has three sons and two grandsons, moved to Hartford after high school to attend college. He remained in Connecticut and worked in real estate management for 30 years before relocating to Croton-on-Hudson six years ago. He hadn’t painted for some time, until last year when one of his sons asked him for a painting that he could use to promote his band Lovehoney, an R&B, soul, punk and funk band featuring White’s son, Tommy, on lead guitar. The Brooklyn-based band has performed at the Paramount in Peekskill a few times.
“That got me started back to painting,” White recalled. “That’s also when my website was created.”
White’s work offers a rhythmic energy that reverberates off the canvas. “Renaissance,” at 20 by 40 inches and one of his larger multicolored canvases, is a series of vigorous, brush strokes fanning upwards emulating palm tree fronds bending in the wind.
“Mirage” is a fleeting rush of deep navy blue, sea greens and shades of gold sweeping across the canvas, redolent of speeding on a highway whose blacktop has been transformed to luminous pigments.
Velvety magentas highlighted by sparkling yellows swirl in thick textures in White’s “Some Roses are Red,” inviting the viewer to imagine being swaddled in rose petals.
Inspiration for White has come from such artists as Georgia O’Keefe, the famous 20th century artist known for her large-format paintings of natural subjects, especially flowers and bones. White has also followed the abstract expressionist painter Norman Lewis, an African American artist who was active during the Harlem Renaissance.
Music and poetry still motivate White. He authored “The Eminence of Woman,”
a collection of poems, and “100 Quotes and Jokes for All Folks,” inspiring musings and entertaining quips for people of all ages. Two music compositions by White are “Essence” and “Shades” recorded by members of Lovehoney. Along with his paintings, his books and music can be found on his website at https://www.thomaswhitejr.com.
White uses acrylic paint and works on canvas and plywood. Some paintings on plywood have short poems written on the back.
“I see it as a bonus-type thing,” he explained. “I’ve been inspired by the poet Langston Hughes and his very short poems. They make a point and then they are through.”
Prices for White’s paintings range from $75 for smaller works to $2,500 for the larger canvases.
“Abstraction: A Collection of Paintings” is on view through the end of March. An opening reception is scheduled for this Saturday, Mar. 9 from 2 to 4 p.m. at the John C. Hart Memorial Library, located at 1130 E. Main St. in Shrub Oak. For more information, contact the library at 914-245-5262 or at https://yorktownlibrary.org.
