Ralph Thomas

Artist Statement

20yrs career in the U.S. Navy. I am a self-taught artist, raised in the heart of N.C. Durham's South Side, where my love for painting first sparked with a childhood paint-by-numbers set. That joy turned into a lifelong God gifted talent for me to tell stories, preserve memories and give a voice to stories that are often overlooked.

My art is rooted in folk tradition, but it is also deeply personal. I work primarily in oil, blending other materials like acrylic, pastel, moss and other added texture and life to my paintings.