Thomas Bils investigates the mutability of truth and narrative. Reflecting during the beginning of the opioid crisis on the absurdities familiar to him from growing up in the suburban South, Thomas crafts images that are often drawn from personal experiences, carefully blurring the borders between fact and fiction. In these slippages of recollection, he takes on the role of unreliable narrator to develop a situational ambiguity, prompting the viewer to identify where the fabrications occur in an attempt to grasp meaning and order.

 My current series of paintings is focused on the kinship between drawing and painting through methods of improvisation, layering, and the use of digital references. Using an array of mediums, such as acrylic, airbrush, charcoal, collage, and ink, this body of work explores the surface quality of paint by preserving its initial application in some areas while building up multiple layers in other areas to give the surface a more refined quality and rendering.

 A dog shadow puppet doesn’t really look like a dog. But you can look up a table of “shadow puppets,” and there it is, labeled with the word “dog.” That word could also mean friend. Or feet. Or a hot dog, which is different than a hot dog. And a hot dog is different than a hot dog. Which is different than a dog in heat. Maybe a sandwich, an animal with a temperature, a sexy animal, or the same, just at a particular time in its life. Whatever “it” is, it’s always elsewhere, running away, one step ahead.

 My practice examines issues of race, inequity, economic deprivation, the mundane, and hysteria relative to America’s sociopolitical landscape. Through abstraction, representation, and the space in between, I explore the phenomenological aspects of violence and the moments of peace/balance that exists therein, fueled by my experience as a martial artist and upbringing in an urban environment. Abstraction has formed a vehicle for recollecting my experiences as a fighter and placing me in the position of a spectator.

 My work explores memory via still life, found objects, and portraiture in minimalist representational painting and drawing. It reflects my desire to remember both the significant events and the small and intimate moments in life. Furthermore, it acts as a visual catalogue for my memories, a secure physical representation of how I recalled a moment. I romanticize the minutiae of everyday life, and I want to communicate the impact of ephemera as I remember it by visually referencing objects that symbolize the whole scene.

 I approach painting, printmaking, and video through the lens of collage. By layering abstract painting techniques on top of media, I build compositions that are portals from life on earth into worlds where the depths of the ocean and the far reaches of outer space coexist. I use archival materials to inspire a reimagining of our shared histories: family snapshots, basketball cards, and images from Black publications. My work becomes a liberatory space where the past communes with the present and Black female power is the guiding form of salvation.

 My current cloud compositions deal with the idea of conflict and turbulence, both domestically and abroad. These clouds also double as nebulas, contracting and expanding energy around the idea of conflict. These works deal with notions of political strife coexisting with environmental concerns, and create compositions of smaller troubled environments coexisting in larger yet equally troubled ones. There are fragmented figurative elements existing within and outside of these clouds, as well as tools, weapons, and vices.

 My current work deals with the materiality of paint through varied applications, surface development, and color to contribute to both the pictorial and expressive qualities of an image. I do this through a combination of figure and landscape studies, and recontextualizations of paintings from art history. I am refining my palette, surface, and space by focusing on color interactions, brushwork, and their relationship to the picture plane. In my paintings I tell stories of identity, heritage, and family.

 My recent body of work attempts to answer a question I’ve been asking myself for a long time: How specific a story do I want to tell?

 I seek to create work that is continuously looking forward. I use abstract forms and brushwork, juxtaposed with refined figures and structures that emerge through the encased space as if they were jumping out at you. These techniques are utilized to create the feel of anticipation for the viewer. I want them to feel as if they are sitting on the brink of something big and something new. I also use African American males as the main subject for each work. This comes from a desire to see Black men represented better in society and the arts, in a more positive light.