Ann Thomson is one of Australia′s most eminent contemporary painters. She is known for her vibrant, expressive compositions. Described by the late Edmund Capon as “one of the most interesting and intuitive artists in Australia today”, Ann′s works are not intended to replicate a scene or a landscape, but rather evoke a sense of place.
"Physical exuberance is innate to her, and it is expressed more strongly than ever in her recent work. Her feeling for pulse and rhythm, for irrepressible physical energies projected into space, imbues her pictorial conceptions with a great vivacity." - Terence Maloon, Director, Drill Hall Gallery, Canberra
Since graduating from the National Art School in 1962 she has balanced art teaching with countless solo and group exhibitions throughout Australia and overseas. Thomson has been the recipient of a number of prizes including the Wynne Prize at the Art Gallery of NSW, Kedumba Drawing Prize and the Geelong Contemporary Art Prize. Her work is included in many important public collections including the the National Gallery of Australia, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Queensland Art Gallery, Newcastle Regional Art Gallery, Macquarie Bank Collection, Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection, Madrid and Villa Haiss Museum, Germany.
“To paint a specific subject is just not my way of working. I have to be more open. It’s like opening another door that is to do with trust, it’s to do with memory, and having the knowledge that when you start painting the creative process begins. Too much thinking about it gets in the way.” - Ann Thomson (Artist Profile Magazine, 2016).