Composing Color: Paintings by Alma Thomas

Media - 1978.40.3 - SAAM-1978.40.3_2 - 137737

Alma Thomas, The Eclipse, 1970, acrylic on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the artist, 1978.40.3

Alma Thomas is a singular figure in the story of twentieth-century American art. She developed her exuberant form of abstract painting late in life, after retiring from a long career as a schoolteacher. Blossoming in the mid-1960s, her vibrant, rhythmic art transcended established genres, incorporating elements of gestural abstraction and color field painting. Thomas’s abiding sources of inspiration were nature, the cosmos, and music. She created a style distinctly her own, characterized by the dazzling interplay of pattern and hue. 

Description

The Smithsonian American Art Museum has the largest public collection of works by Alma Thomas in the world. Thomas’s art first entered SAAM’s collection in 1970. The museum acquired more than a dozen works during the artist’s lifetime, and thirteen that were bequeathed to the museum by Thomas after her death. Composing Color: Paintings by Alma Thomas draws on these extensive holdings to offer an intimate view of Thomas’s evolving practice during her most prolific period, 1959 to 1978. 

In the mid-1960s, Alma Thomas created a painting style distinctly her own, characterized by the dazzling interplay of pattern and vibrant color. Thomas once stated, “Art could be anything. It could be behavior—as long as it’s beautiful.”

In her work, color can be symbolic and multisensory, evoking sound, motion, temperature, even scent. Her abiding source of inspiration was nature—whether seen through her kitchen window or from outer space. Organized around the artist’s favored themes of Space, Earth, and Music, this show invites you to see the world through Alma Thomas’s eyes. She often assigned titles to her own paintings that connect natural phenomena, like flowers or a sunset, with song. In her art, nature and music are treated as twin expressions of a fundamental life force or spirit.  

Consciously oriented toward the future, she embraced the technological and social changes of the twentieth century. Her artistic evolution from academic painting to abstraction reflected this forward-facing attitude—her belief in the need for “a new art representing a new era.”  

New research into her materials and techniques show how Thomas continued to innovate artistically until the end of her life, at times changing her methods to adapt to her declining physical ability due to arthritis. As the luminous works in the exhibition reveal, Thomas’s astounding creative drive and mastery of color remained constant through her final years.

After the exhibition closes at SAAM, it will travel to several venues across the United States.

This exhibition is organized by Melissa Ho, curator of twentieth-century art at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, with support from Maria Eipert, curatorial assistant.

 

Visiting Information

September 15, 2023 June 2, 2024
Open Daily, 11:30 a.m.–7:00 p.m
Free Admission

Events

27
Friday
Oct
Art Bites Gallery Talk
Friday, October 27, 2023, 12:15 – 12:45pm EDT
Free | Meet in G Street Lobby
 
2
Thursday
Nov
Ekphrastic Poetry Workshop
Thursday, November 2, 2023, 5:30pm EDT
Free | Registration required

Videos

Credit

Composing Color: Paintings by Alma Thomas is organized by the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Generous support has been provided by:

 

  • Helen Frankenthaler Foundation
  • Chris G. Harris
  • Wolf Kahn Foundation
  • Susan Talley

SAAM Stories

A detail of a comic book cover showing a young African American girl with a paintbrush in her hand
09/21/2021
Celebrating what would have been artist Alma Thomas’s 130th birthday with a comic about her life and work
Two views of a painting under different lighting conditions.
Conservators at SAAM uncover new aspects of the influential artist’s work
Amber Kerr
Sydney Nikolaus

Educational Resources

a powerpoint slide showing an artwork by Alma Thomas and the title of the program
Alma Thomas: Teacher, Artist Trailblazer (Part 1)

On Wednesday, June 29, the Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM) hosted the first of two free webinars for educators celebrating the creative brilliance of renowned painter Alma Thomas, who was born in the heart of the Jim Crow south and came of age in Washington DC, where she witnessed the social change of the 1960s and was inspired by the Space Age. Join Jonathan F. Walz, Director of Curatorial Affairs & Curator of American Art at the Columbus Museum of Art, to learn about Thomas' remarkable life as a teacher and artist. Cynthia Hodge-Thorne, curatorial fellow at the Baltimore Museum of Art, leads a discussion on the artist’s fascination with the scientific advancements of her day. The program concludes with a Q&A and a preview of new teacher-tested lesson plans.

A powerpoint slide showing Alma Thomas's artwork and the title of the educational program
Alma Thomas: Teacher, Artist, Trailblazer (Part 2)

On Tuesday, October 18, the Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM) hosted the second of two free webinars for educators celebrating the creative brilliance of renowned painter Alma Thomas, who was born in the heart of the Jim Crow south and came of age in Washington DC, where she witnessed the social change of the 1960s and was inspired by the Space Age. Join aerospace engineer Janelle Wellons and horticulturist Abra Lee, as they reflect on artist Alma Thomas’s legacy as a STEAM trailblazer. Wellons shares insights on how visual images and inquiry can unlock the mysteries of the cosmos, while Lee unearths the histories of Black gardeners. Together, these reflections provide an in-depth understanding of Thomas’s cultural impact and the ways in which her work continues to inspire adults and students alike. The program concludes with a Q&A and a preview of new teacher-tested lesson plans

A light and dark pink abstract painting
Cultivate Joyful Connections: New Arts-Integrated Lessons

Teacher-tested! Explore five new lesson plans for grades K-8, and discover how the vibrant paintings of Washington, DC artist Alma Thomas can spark interdisciplinary inquiry in STEM, ELA, and Music. This project received support from the Smithsonian American Women’s History Initiative.

 

Online Gallery

Media - 1970.324 - SAAM-1970.324_1 - 52851
Light Blue Nursery
Date1968
acrylic on canvas
On view
Media - 1978.40.3 - SAAM-1978.40.3_2 - 137737
The Eclipse
Date1970
acrylic on canvas
On view
Media - 1976.140.1 - SAAM-1976.140.1_1 - 4885
Snoopy – Early Sun Display on Earth
Date1970
acrylic on canvas
On view
Media - 1977.48.5 - SAAM-1977.48.5_1 - 59312
Red Sunset, Old Pond Concerto
Date1972
acrylic on canvas
On view
Media - 1980.36.7 - SAAM-1980.36.7_2 - 136239
Aquatic Gardens
Date1973
acrylic on canvas
On view
Media - 1980.36.3 - SAAM-1980.36.3_1 - 68577
White Roses Sing and Sing
Date1976
acrylic on canvas
On view
Media - 1980.36.13 - SAAM-1980.36.13_2 - 136235
Antares
Date1972
acrylic on canvas
On view
Media - 1976.140.3 - SAAM-1976.140.3_2 - 146888
Atmospheric Effects I
Date1970
acrylic and pencil on paper
On view
Media - 1976.140.4 - SAAM-1976.140.4_2 - 146890
Atmospheric Effects II
Date1971
acrylic and pencil on paper
Not on view
Media - 1980.36.1 - SAAM-1980.36.1_1 - 53030
Fall Begins
Date1976
acrylic on canvas
On view
Media - 1980.36.12 - SAAM-1980.36.12_1 - 66118
Spring Grass
Date1973
acrylic on canvas
On view
Media - 1980.36.9 - SAAM-1980.36.9_1 - 83166
Autumn Leaves Fluttering in the Breeze
Date1973
acrylic on canvas
On view
Media - 1980.36.10 - SAAM-1980.36.10_1 - 66973
Snow Reflections on Pond
Date1973
acrylic on canvas
On view
Media - 1978.40.5 - SAAM-1978.40.5_1 - 52858
Untitled (Music Series)
Date1978
acrylic on canvas
On view
Media - 1980.36.4 - SAAM-1980.36.4_2 - 136236
Delightful Song by Red Dahlia
Date1976
acrylic on canvas
On view
Media - 1980.36.5 - SAAM-1980.36.5_2 - 136237
Grassy Melodic Chant
Date1976
acrylic on canvas
On view
Media - 1980.36.8 - SAAM-1980.36.8_1 - 83165
Elysian Fields
Date1973
acrylic on canvas
On view

Artists

Media - 1977.121 - SAAM-1977.121_1 - 52854
Alma Thomas
born Columbus, GA 1891-Washington, DC 1978

During the 1960s Alma Thomas emerged as an exuberant colorist, abstracting shapes and patterns from the trees and flowers around her.