THOMAS MALCOLM COOK

My Name is Thomas Malcolm Cook, acrylic and multi-media artist based in Portland Oregon, and this is the start of my blog. I am creating this to open a window not only into my creative process, but into the Portland art scene and the art world in general.

I received my education from University of Washington in the early 1990’s. I had some absolutely wonderful teachers, creating really spectacular art. My current love of painting, curating and teaching came from my art school years in Seattle.

Some things that were decidedly missing from my education were the practical concerns for full time artists, such as stretching canvas, photographing your art, the best place to purchase art supplies, pricing, building a portfolio, etc.. Tools, Tip, and Techniques, if you will. I want to touch on many of those topics in this blog.

Since I started curating my own shows in 2007, I have found that along with the previously mentioned individual concerns that are lacking in most art education, so are those associated with interacting with galleries, collectors and other artists.

Added to all that I would like to shine a light on my very specific and individual art making processes, and to my experiences being a practicing artist in Portland.

I hope you will enjoy the information, and please feel free to share your own experiences. Sharing is what art is about. We as artists (and we are all artists) can not lose that.

Thomas Malcolm Cook