Biografie

Phillip Thomas was born 1980 in Kingston, Jamaica. Upon graduating with a Bachelors of Fine Arts from the Edna Manley College of the Visual and Performing Arts in Kingston Jamaica, Phillip Thomas received a grant from the Cobb Family Foundation as well as a scholarship from the C.H.A.S.E Fund to study and complete a Master's degree in New York. He completed his studies at the New York Academy of Art, where he graduated at the top of his class and was awarded a fellowship from the Academy.

He has exhibited his artwork extensively in Jamaica and internationally. His awards include the Bronze Musgrave Medal for excellence in art in 2014, the Public Prize in the 2006 SuperPlus Under 40 Artist of the Year competition and the Aaron Matalon Award in the 2008 National Biennial. He is the winner of the last Jamaican / Caribbean Biennale of contemporary art 2016. Thomas has been collected by major institutions such as the national gallery of Jamaica. His work combines the imagery and traditions of the Old Masters with contemporary textures and patterns to create a new iconography. We caught up with Phillip as he was preparing to exhibit his art at the 7th Edition of Art Africa Miami Arts Fair on December 5-10, 2017.