Andy Thomas Paints Political Masterpieces
You’re probably seen them. If you haven’t, you need to. One is called “Grand Ol’ Gang.” The other? “True Blues.”
Both oil paintings, painstakingly created by Carthage native Andy Thomas, have local residents buzzing — but in a good way.
Best known for his western and historical murals, be it a cowboy gripping a six-shooter or blue and grey armies colliding among Virginia pines, Thomas has gone political — quite appropriate, with presidential elections less than a month away.
Recently placed up for bid at the San Antonio-based Greenhouse Gallery of Fine Art, these two monumental paintings sum up everything that’s “good” about politics, despite the current era of “mud-slinging.”
“Grand Ol’ Gang” depicts eight Republican presidents playing poker around a small table, laughing it up and generally having a grand old time. Ronald Reagan is the centerpiece, smiling as he leans comfortably back in his seat and flanked by father and son Bush, the latter leaning over Reagan’s left shoulder. A laughing Dwight Eisenhower and giggling Teddy Roosevelt are joined by a grinning Richard Nixon, a smiling Gerald Ford and, with his back to the viewer, the unmistakable profile of Abraham Lincoln.
Thomas’ Democratic counterpart, “True Blues,” shows much the same, displaying lots of Democrat presidents’ grins and good-natured ribbing, far removed from the rigid partisan wars erupting inside Washington D.C.
In this painting, a confident Bill Clinton is the centerpiece, flanked by a grinning John F. Kennedy and Woodrow Wilson. They are joined by a standing Lyndon Johnson, a chuckling Harry Truman, a reserved Jimmy Carter, a pipe-smoking Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and, with his back to the viewer, the unmistakable profile of Andrew Jackson.
The paintings were completed in the spring of 2007. Thomas said the idea for the works came at the suggestion of Somerset Fine Arts, the Texas-based company that distributes his works to dealers.
The order of the various presidents, Thomas said, “wasn’t random. It was pretty well thought out. We had pretty much determined who to put in there before I started. As I played around with the sketches, I realized right off you have to pick one figure that will stand out and… be the center focus.”
He chose Bill Clinton and Ronald Reagan.
“It was obvious with Reagan, among the Republicans he’s become an icon, and he’s still fresh in our memories. With the Democrats it was much tougher, because there’s FDR Democrats and JFK Democrats and Clinton Democrats, and I chose Clinton because I wanted the painting to be meaningful to a new generation of people. And he was a very effective president, even though he’s controversial.”
He chose Lincoln and Jackson because each is considered the “founder” of their parties. “And since they are iconic, they were really good fits.”
Thomas strived not to include any negativity into either of the two paintings.
“I pretty much took every negative thing out of there and I’m glad I did — I’m kinda a Pollyanna when it comes to America, I don’t want to make fun of (the Presidents). These are all great men, they all had their trials, and mostly the county leads itself and these men are just along for the ride.”
Thomas’ research with any of his award-winning paintings is often extensive. For his foray into the political realm, however, he reached new heights.
He downloaded dozens of pictures, and spent roughly four hours scanning the faces and stances of each president. He used his son-in-law as a physical model, positioning him in the positions of the presidents that eventually appeared in the murals.
But it’s not just the faces he was concerned about. It’s the stances, where the arms go, what the hands are doing, what the men are wearing. Even their height was a factor, Thomas said. While Johnson rivaled Lincoln in height at 6-3, Nixon was 5-11 in height and Truman topped out at 5-10.
“I really had to look at them and adjust the height.”
The body language of the presidents was also paramount, he continued. Reagan leans back in his chair, while the gregarious Teddy Roosevelt is seen barking out one of his infamous cackles.
“Originally,” Thomas said, “I had Teddy Roosevelt (being) very gregarious, (with a) big smile, confident, and throwing his arms around Richard Nixon, and including him in his hearty laugh.”
Thomas originally had Nixon with his typically dour expression, hiding his cards, not letting anyone see them. “And it was funny, but that just feeds on Richard Nixon jokes, and that’s not what this was about,” Thomas said.
“When we first started off, even doing the sketches, there was a fine line between making fun of their personalities, and honoring their personalities.”
There are also neat details to find if you study the paintings hard enough. For example, if you look carefully, Clinton has managed to garner all the chips from the other Democrat presidents. A relaxed Kennedy, leaning over Clinton, is wearing his boating clothes. Even Truman, often portrayed as so serious and blunt, was quite the snappy dresser in his day, and is wearing the Hawaiian shirts he loved so much. And Eisenhower, an avid golfer, is shown in his best putting duds.
“Of all the Presidents, and of all the candid pictures, Eisenhower was probably photographed laughing the most,” Thomas said. “He must have been a very confident person, and he was never so tense that he couldn’t laugh at something, and he had a very wonderful laugh.”
He would have been easy for Thomas to have the Presidents sitting or standing behind a long table, each facing the viewer. But that would have looked unnatural.
“It was very challenging to make them seem lifelike and natural. I wanted them to be interacting with one another.”
His favorite President is Reagan, though he admitted “The Gipper” was also the most difficult to paint. Papa and Son Bush also proved somewhat difficult. Thomas wanted to draw presidents in their own presidential age bracket, “and H.W. Bush was difficult because his image of a president mingles with his current image and that of his son. It was tough.”
Right now, Thomas is in talks in doing a follow-up, “but everything we’ve talked about seems more cheesy, somehow. I don’t know how I follow it up, and maybe I don’t.”
Don’t think for a second that Thomas is going to turn his back on the Civil War and the Wild West.
“I’ve had some paintings that have sold very well, and the first thing everybody says, including the dealer or gallery, is (for me to do) another one just like it. If I did that, I would immediately be doing one painting after another of an almost identical subject matter. There are some artists who have done that, and have made their whole career out of doing that, basically the same painting over and over and over again.
“If you’re not painting what you want to paint, painting is hard work, hours and hours sitting at an easel trying to do something better than you’ve ever done it before, and once you start and it becomes drudgery, the passion goes out.
“I’ve really jumped around on my subject matter to keep it interesting for myself.”
Deadline passes in auction
The deadline passed at 8 p.m., Sunday for bidders to bid on Thomas' two paintings "True Blue," and "Grand ol' Gang," but no sale had been made as of early Tuesday.
The starting bid at the Greenhouse Gallery of Fine Art in San Antonio, Tex., for the two works was $40,000. Jim James, owner of the Greenhouse Gallery, said the auction finished on time, but he wasn't sure what happened as far as making the final sale.
He said he was communicating with Andy and Dina Thomas to find out the final disposition of the paintings and the auction.
Details: See the Web at http://www.greenhousegallery.com/auction.html
About Andy Thomas
Many call Andy Thomas the ‘Storyteller' and if you have ever had a chance to view his work you might just agree. Currently he is telling many stories with his action filled western art. These pieces are bringing the cowboys back to life as well as the American West history. In the past, Andy has painted many subjects from a picnic by the river, kids playing sports to a brutal bear fight. All of his paintings end up telling you, the viewer, some kind of story of our lives.
His studio is located at 1495 E. 13th Street, Carthage, (800) 432-1581.
