Born December 1st, 1974 in the town of Annecy in the Haute Savoie region of France, Nicolas Thomas glided into “board culture” with no idea that one day, it would bring him more than the simple joy of crusing on concrete or snow. A passionate skateboarder, then snowboarder; scribbler since before he can remember; painter because “it’s hard to find paper bigger than A3;”... the link between his work and these sports developed naturally and Nicolas’ personal style quickly became a part and parcel of board culture.
Nourished by the esthetic of the numerous U.S. products presented in board magazines and skate shops, the imagery and graphical codes of this universe were the art galleries from which Nicolas drew his inspiration. He chose the medium of skateboards and snowboards as his means of expression on the street and in the public eye.
Nicolas has a style all his own, combining at once pictorial techniques using broad, flat colors and transparency, with typical graphical arts processes derived from the world of comics and design.Nicolas seems to seek almost physical contact with his paintings as he layers detail into his canvasses that can only be seen up close, using the fine-tipped industrial pens he inherited from his studies in industrial design. His paintings can be apprehended at a distance or with a nose to the canvas.
Situated between painting and illustration, his work revolves around grand recurrent themes: portraits, more or less abstract landscapes, genre scenes, graphics, and logos. His totemic characters, at times organic, mineral or human-machines, are at once mutant and multiform.
At times melancholic or droll, the spectator travels through a waking dream, yet the subjects at its heart are anchored in reality. Dream of reality, reality dreamed...this duality keeps Nicolas on alert and ready to capture whatever crosses the threshold of his senses.
Obsessed by the number 4, Nicolas learns four times more, listens four times harder... For him, everything is a source of inspiration, everything he touches is recycled, digested, interpreted and put to paper. His sketch books pile up and accumulate; so many ideas made into images; thoughts reserved, ready to (re)gain life on the canvas. In addition to his beaux art activities, Nicolas is now the artistic director of Apo snowboards. He just needs four times more Time, like us all...
