About the Artist
The theme of Bryan Keith Thomas' recent work is the celebration of the black experience through its historic symbols: cotton, roses, and the African and African American ancestral image. Growing up in the south, Thomas remembers how many older black people would burden their posture when amidst whites. In contrast, his relatives, like Aunt Lucy Mae Whiteside and Great Grandmother Cassie Grandberry Reed could, by simply standing in a doorway, exude a presence that would completely embrace the room. It is this respectability and singularity with which Bryan Keith Thomas wishes to engage the viewer. These women remind him that presence can represent itself with the silence of a singular form.

As stated by the artist recently "As I continue my present journey, I will always give homage to those people and experiences that brought me here. All the things I remember about my past cultivate, clarify, and define my now."