Written By L.A. Sokolowski, Equinista | Photos Provided
“I want a party happening in my paintings,”
says artist Tom Myott and with works in his studio, on exhibit in downtown Saratoga, and enjoyed in private collections, the South Glens Falls native is living up to his word.
During the summer, he can be found charming pedestrians while spreading joy and paint on a canvas, set up on the sidewalk in front of Silverwood Home and Gallery, Saratoga Olive Oil, or at Congress Park. Preceding the track opening, he heads north into the Adirondacks for inspiration amid the grand prix show-jumping action of the Lake Placid and I Love New York Horse Shows.
“Children love horses to begin with,” he says, recalling his own boyhood encounters with the animals at a farm near his family’s upstate home. “When I paint on the street, I often have young onlookers. I believe they are just as entranced by the process, and fluidity of applying strokes of color to a canvas, as they are by the subject.
“I enjoy asking a child to take a turn at painting on my canvas! Although they’re usually hesitant at first, it doesn't take a young artist long to wield a paintbrush confidently. It’s an experience that creates a lasting memory for a child and their parents, and I certainly enjoy it as well.”
The dots, dashes, and circles integral to his style translate into an artful Morse code for communicating with young people. They also bring full circle a very personal chapter from his early days as an artist.
“I knew in elementary school that I wanted to be an artist. I loved to draw. Bill McCarthy was my strongest influence through [South Glens Falls High] school. He was my art and drawing teacher.”
With the support and encouragement of his parents, Tom chose to study art education at Buffalo State College, following in his mentor’s footsteps. “[Bill] also graduated from Buffalo State. I was fortunate enough to obtain an art teaching position at my alma mater, so I taught with Bill for 15 years, until he retired.” Today, Tom Myott Gallery shares studio space with Bill’s Eastside Pottery in The Shirt Factory in Glens Falls.
Dashes to da Vinci
Tom began exploring his professional career as a painter after a few years of teaching, first seeking to define his technique by emulating such painters as modern American conceptual portraitist, Chuck Close, and French post-Impressionist, Georges Seurat.
“From an artist’s perspective, Thoroughbred racing is about motion and color. The dots and dashes allow me to create a sense of movement and emotion. This appealed to me more than traditional techniques of blending. I want a party happening in my colorful, expressive paintings!”
His approach to each horse-themed painting is different. “I adjust the medium, technique and style to accommodate what I am looking for. Brush types, size and expression of marks, saturation of colors, and number of subtle layers to apply are a few of the variables I use to control the work.
“I am heavily influenced by [Italian Renaissance artist and sculptor, Leonardo] da Vinci. I love the spontaneity and variety of line quality. I start with a loose, gestural line capturing the essence of the action. I enjoy the work so much at this point that I want to showcase it, not hide it beneath layers of color so I begin applying washes of muted tones over the charcoal sketches. This preserves the integrity of the line and gives it a sophisticated, earthy appearance.”
Racehorses and show horses represent different worlds, so Tom ‘swaps leads’ when it comes to choosing techniques: “For me, the difference is in the relationship between the rider and horse. When painting a racing scene, I tend to use a similar technique throughout; I’m not concerned with recognition of a jockey’s facial features. When I paint a hunter/jumper competing, I prefer to adjust my technique to paint enough detail, so the rider is recognizable. I use a more traditional, realistic approach in the face and taper my brush strokes into the Impressionist technique of dots and dashes through the rest of the painting.”
Final Impressions
“Painting a single horse is more intimate: I attempt to connect with its personality. When I’m painting a racing scene, I emphasize the tumultuousness of the contest or, conversely, serenity of the paddock.”
As the season opens, he’s grateful to again have a chance to capture all the energy and motion through his brush strokes, and make more memories for families and horse lovers to share.
“There are so many wonderful experiences that I am left with when I am finishing a painting. Every part of the horse show and Thoroughbred racing industries offers an artist the opportunity to portray it in their own way.”
So go ahead, throw a party. Paint the town Thoroughbred.
His work is available in Saratoga at Silverwood Home and Gallery and Saratoga Olive Oil Company. He is accepting commissions, and visits to his Glens Falls studio in The Shirt Factory are available by appointment. www.tmyottart.com.
