Thomas Mainardi

Bold and ostentatious, works by self-taught French painter Thomas Mainardi demand your attention. Against a backdrop of splashy brushwork, posterized figures, elegantly crafted from solid black, strike a pose. They are often notorious singers, artists, or media personalities postured in dynamic self-satisfaction. Concentrated hues, created with acrylic and spray-paint, clash on the canvas, forcefully brushed or dripping down the image to reveal textured layers beneath. Mainardi’s paintings are direct and willful, employing the finest elements of Abstract Expressionism and Pop Art in perfect accord, a style he has dubbed "Pop Expressionism.” His work deals with many of the individualistic elements within Western society that are responsible for both our ills and our triumphs. Mainardi is exploring “our consumerist society,” he explains, “in which the cult of the individual is more tangible than ever.” His creative eye is steadily focused back on our collective self, delighting in our contradictions while forcing us to confront them.

Mainardi exhibits frequently in Europe, Asia and North America. He lives and works in Paris.