B.1985 Las Vegas, NV
Lives in NYC
BIO
My notion of fine art in Las Vegas extended as far as the plaster sculptures outside Caesar's Palace. I grew up in southern Nevada in an at-risk household, with sketchbooks and skateboards as sources of refuge. In 2009 I was the first in my family to graduate college, receiving a BFA in painting from University of Nevada, Las Vegas. From there I moved to Boston––as instructional support at the Wellesley College Art Department––which led me to New York, receiving my MFA from New York University in 2019. I have 15 years experience as an artist, with works in the Museum of Modern Art Archives, Whitney Museum Library, New York Public Library, Printed Matter, and with the Art Production Fund. I am a former visual art professor at Rhode Island School of Design, NYU Steinhardt, and Bentley University. I currently live in New York and am an Assistant Professor of Studio Art at the University of Mount Saint Vincent in North Bronx. My hometown of Las Vegas––a dichotomy of community and spectacle, consumption and production, reenactment and reality––informs my outlook and work.
EDUCATION
2019 New York University—MFA
2009 University of Nevada, Las Vegas—BFA Cum Laude
PROFESSIONAL APPOINTMENTS
2024-2021 University of Mount Saint Vincent. New York, NY –– Assistant Professor of Studio Art
2021-2020 Rhode Island School of Design. Providence, RI –– Adjunct Assistant Professor of Studio Art
2021-2018 New York University. New York, NY –– Adjunct Assistant Professor of Studio Art
2020-2018 Creative Art Start. New York, NY –– Elementary Art Teacher
2019 Design Initiative NYU. New York, NY –– Instructor of Studio Art
2018 New York University. New York, NY –– Teaching Assistant to Assistant Professor of Studio Art
2017-2013 Wellesley College. Wellesley, MA –– Instructional Support Specialist / Teaching Assistant to Art Professor
2013-2012 Bentley University. Waltham, MA –– Adjunct Assistant Professor of Studio Art & Media Studies
2008-2007 ArtsBridge America. Las Vegas, NV –– Instructor of Studio Art
SOLO EXHIBITIONS / INSTALLATIONS / PERFORMANCES
2019 NYU MFA Art Critique (Performance). Montez Press Radio. New York, NY
NYU MFA Art Critique (Performance). Printed Matter Inc. New York, NY
2018 NYU MFA Art Critique (Performance). Distillery Gallery Boston. Boston, MA
Thoughts and Prayer Casino (Exhibition). 80wse Gallery. New York, NY
Retrofit Painting: deCordova Store (Installation). deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum. Lincoln, MA
2017 Everything Must Go (Exhibtion). Dorchester Art Project. Boston, MA
2016 Retrofit Painting Boston Release Party Featuring (Installation). Casablanc. Boston, MA
Retrofit Painting Presents… (Installation). Jewett Art Gallery. Wellesley, MA
2015 Retrofit Painting of Las Vegas (Installation). P3Studio at Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. Las Vegas, NV
2014 Secret Garden (Installation) (in collaboration with John C Gonzalez). Le Petit Versailles. New York City, NY
Retrofit Painting @ the deCordova Biennial's Home Depot House (Installation). deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum. Lincoln, MA
2012 A Few More Paintings (Exhibition). McGladrey Art Gallery. Waltham, MA
2010 Collected and Represented (Exhibition). Trifecta Gallery. Las Vegas, NV
2009 Within / Without (Exhibition). Henri & Odette. Las Vegas, NV.
2008 New Works (Exhibition). Epicenter Avant Gallery. Las Vegas, NV.
PUBLISHED PROJECTS
2023 “By Caricature Artists in Times Square” (peer-reviewed series). Street Notes, Volume 30. University of California, Davis.
2020 “Platform Strategies” (concept design/illustrator). MetaLab Harvard. Cambridge, MA
2018 “NYU MFA Art Critique” (solo-book). Printed Matter Inc. New York, NY
2017 “Kanye’s Desiign, or The Author Function in the Age of Yeezus” (peer-reviewed article coauthored with Michael Maizels). Critical Inquiry. University of Chicago Press.
PUBLIC ART / COLLECTIONS
2019 Whitney Museum Library. New York, NY
New York Public Library. New York, NY
2018 Museum of Modern Art Archives. New York, NY
2017 Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art. Las Vegas, NV
Wellesley College. Wellesley, MA
2015 Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. Las Vegas, NV
2014 New Art Center. Newton, MA
2012 Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health. Las Vegas, NV
2009 The Bus Stops Here. Las Vegas, NV.
2008 Zap2. Las Vegas, NV.
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS / INSTALLATIONS / PERFORMANCES
2023 Emotional Show (Curated by Alisha Kerlin). Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art. Las Vegas, NV.
Abstract Borders | Reflections on Belonging (Curated by Vivian Zavataro). MACAA: Mid-American College Art Association. Online.
Printed Matter East Village Zine Fair (Curated by Acompi). Printed Matter Inc. New York, NY.
DEI Performance Showcase (Curated by Gabriella Sanchez). Cahill Theatre. New York, NY
2022 Printed Matter East Village Zine Fair (Curated by Acompi). Printed Matter St. Marks. New York, NY
Dis/Order (Curated by Jennifer Kleven and Krystal Ramirez). Couch in the Desert. Las Vegas, NV
2021 Beacon (Curated by the Honey Pump Art Agency). Satellite Art Club. Brooklyn, NY
2019 Pond (Curated by Constanza Valenzuela and Emilee Graverson). Barney Commons. New York, NY
2017 Media Arts Festival Arad 4 (Curated by Ileana Selejan). Cinema ARTA. Arad, Romania
2016 Works Well With Others: Collaborations with John C Gonzalez (Curated by Ian Alden Russell). David Winton Bell Gallery. Providence, RI
2015 Inaugural Exhibition (Curated by John Robert Roy). How's Howard. Boston, MA
Between You and Me (Curated by Sarah Pollman). Dorchester Art Project. Boston, MA
2014 Boston Contemporary Art Museum For Contemporary Art, Artists, And Their Contemporaries (Curated by Pat Falco). Boston Arts Festival/Mobius. Boston, MA
Perceptual Ballads and Patrick Quilao (Curated by Marc Dombrosky). The Art Gallery at Southwestern Michigan College. Dowagic, MI
Flash of an Instant (Curated by Sarah Pollman and Caitlin Moore). New Art Center. Newton, MA
2013 Boston Does Boston Six (Curated by Kara Braciale). Proof Gallery. Boston, MA
2012 Meta (Curated by Camilo Alvarez). Gallery 263. Cambridge, MA
Tote (Curated by Marc Dombrosky). The Art Gallery at Southwestern Michigan College. Dowagiac, MI
2011 Hot for Teacher (Curated by Alaina Gurdak). Howard Art Project. Boston, MA
2010 Tomorrow People. Contemporary Arts Center. Las Vegas, NV
2009 Street Show (Curated by Kristin Calabrese). Elevator Gallery. Las Vegas, NV
RESIDENCIES
2023-2021 Resident Artist. Yonkers Art Residency Project. Yonkers, NY
2017-2011 Resident Artist. Dorchester Art Project (formerly Howard Art Project). Boston, MA
2015 P3Studio Summer Resident. Art Production Fund of New York. The Cosmopolitan Hotel & Casino. Las Vegas, NV
2014 Home Depot House Resident. The deCordova Biennial. deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum. Lincoln, MA
SELECTED PRESS
2021 Artsy Viewing Rooms. “Exhibition Spotlight.” Artsy.com. June.
Artnet Gallery Network. “Three Millenial Women...” Artnet News. January.
2019 McVey, Kurt. “Thomas Ray Willis: Hierarchy of Tears.” Whitehot Magazine. March.
2017 Selejan, Ileana. “Media Arts Festival Arad 4 Exhibition Catalogue.” Cinema ARTA. Arad, Romania. September 1.
Aurise, Elana. “DAP bids Willis farewell with ‘Everything Must Go’ exhibit.” Dorchester Reporter. July 1.
2016 Selejan, Ileana. “Dance like you mean it. Conversation with Thomas Willis.” Big Red and Shiny. June 15.
Russ, Jo. "The End of the P3Studio Artist Residency Era." Huffington Post. January 14.
Dombrosky, Marc. "Nomads, Satellites, & a Dry Heat; Or, Whitney Houston’s Crypt & the Failure of Communication." Settlers + Nomads. January.
2015 Ramirez, Krystal. “Try On Thomas Willis’ Retrofit Paintings” Las Vegas Sun. August 6.
Peterson, Kristen. "Functional Paintings & the High-End Retail Boutique Art Installation at Cosmo's P3Studio." Las Vegas Weekly. August 5.
Whitmore, Mikayla. “Form Equals Function?” Las Vegas Sun. July 9.
Kelly, Danielle. "Interview: Thomas Willis." Helen Magazine. April 30.
2014 Grey Matter Gallery. “Thomas Willis - Boston Massachusetts.” 365 Artists 365 Days. August 9.
Grossman, Suzi. "Flash of an Instant at Newton Art Center." Boston Hassle. April 14.
Staff. "Retrofit Exhibit Continues" Lincoln Journal. April 12.
Lee, Deborah."Playful Work by Artist Thomas Willis at the Home Depot House at deCordova." Art Outdoors. March 16.
2013 Baez, Anulfo. "Boston Does Boston 6." Big Red & Shiny. February 6.
2012 Cash, Kevin. "A Few More Paintings Comes to Bentley." The Vanguard. November 7.
Tynes, Jordan. "Artist Feature: Thomas Willis." Radio Context. April 6.
2010 Kelly, Danielle. "Painting with fire at Trifecta Gallery." Las Vegas Weekly. November 17.
Hough, James. "Tomorrow People at the Contemporary Arts Collective.” Look On My Works. February 22.
Kenway, Jenessa. "Tomorrow People, various artists." Las Vegas City Life. February 4.
LECTURES, ARTIST TALKS, AND PANELS
2023 Guest Speaker. Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art. Las Vegas, NV.
Presenter. “Discovery Through the Design Process.” Winter Teaching Colloquium, CMSV. New York, NY
Guest Lecturer. “What is Evidence?” Honors Seminar, CMSV. New York, NY
Guest Critic. ART/VAEM Senior Capstone Midterm Critique, CMSV. New York, NY
2022 Guest Lecturer and Critic. Experimental & Foundation Studies, RISD. Providence, RI
Panelist. “What is Contemporary Art?” Introduction to Art Criticism, CMSV. New York, NY
2019 Guest Lecturer and Critic. Pre-college Seminar, RISD. Providence, RI
2018 Guest Lecturer. Wellesley College. Wellesley, MA
Guest Critic. Pratt Institute. Brooklyn, NY.
2017 Guest Lecturer. University of Arkansas. Fayetteville, AR
2016 Panelist. Art History Society at Tufts University. Medford, MA
2015 Guest Artist. Suffolk University. Boston, MA
AWARDS / GRANTS
2021 Grant Recipient ($10,000). Kickstarter. New York, NY
2021 Project We Love. Kickstarter. New York, NY
2021 Proposal Finalist. Creative Time Open Call. New York, NY
2011 Photographer of the Year. Portrait Simple. Boston, MA
2009 Contemporary Arts Center Artist’s Pick. Blvds Magazine. Las Vegas, NV
2009 Outstanding Graduate Award. UNLV. Las Vegas, NV
2008 Juror's Choice Award. Annual Juried Art Exhibition, Donna Beam Fine Arts Gallery. Las Vegas, NV
COURSES TAUGHT
ART 101 –– INTRODUCTION TO DRAWING (Bentley University)
ART 102 –– INTRODUCTION TO PAINTING (Bentley University)
ART 108 / CAMS 138 –– B&W PHOTOGRAPHY (Instructional Support at Wellesley College)
ART 116 –– DRAWING II: ADVANCED TECHNIQUES (University of Mount Saint Vincent)
ART 117 –– FOUNDATIONS OF DESIGN I: FORM & ABSTRACTION (University of Mount Saint Vincent)
ART 118 –– FOUNDATIONS OF DESIGN II: COLOR & COMPOSITION (University of Mount Saint Vincent)
ART 123 –– DESIGN A (Rhode Island School of Design)
ART 124 –– DESIGN B (Rhode Island School of Design)
ART 165 / CAMS 135 –– INTRO TO MOVING IMAGE (TA at Wellesley College)
ART 208 / CAMS 238 –– PHOTO II: DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY (TA at Wellesley College)
ART 221 / CAMS 239 –– DIGITAL IMAGING (Instructional Support at Wellesley College)
EMS 242 –– INTRODUCTION TO PHOTOGRAPHY (Bentley University)
ART 265 / CAMS 235 –– INTERMEDIATE FILM/VIDEO PRODUCTION (Instructional Support at Wellesley College)
ART 305 –– PAINTING I: INTRODUCTION TO PAINTING (University of Mount Saint Vincent)
ART 306 –– PAINTING II: ADVANCED TECHNIQUES (University of Mount Saint Vincent)
ART 321 / CAMS 321 –– ADVANCED NEW MEDIA (Instructional Support at Wellesley College)
ART 322 –– DESIGN IDEATION (University of Mount Saint Vincent)
ART 327 –– DIRECTED OPEN STUDIO (University of Mount Saint Vincent)
ART 400 –– DESIGN FOUNDATIONS (TA at New York University)
ART 401 –– DESIGN I: TYPOGRAPHY (New York University)
ART 402 –– DESIGN II: COLOR, COMPOSITION, & PROCESS (New York University)
ART 436 –– TOPICS: EXPERIMENTAL ART PRACTICE (University of Mount Saint Vincent)
ART 460 –– INDEPENDENT STUDY: CHILDREN’S BOOK ILLUSTRATION & DESIGN (University of Mount Saint Vincent)
ART 460 –– INDEPENDENT STUDY: DIGITAL ILLUSTRATION (University of Mount Saint Vincent)
ART 460 –– INDEPENDENT STUDY: MIXED-MEDIA DRAWING (University of Mount Saint Vincent)
ART 460 –– INDEPENDENT STUDY: PUBLIC ART PRACTICES (University of Mount Saint Vincent)
ART 485 –– STUDIO ART SENIOR CAPSTONE (University of Mount Saint Vincent)
COLLEGE SERVICES
2024-2023 UMSV Faculty Affairs Committee –– Chair
2024-2023 UMSV Institutional Technology Committee –– Member
2024-2023 UMSV “Faculty Art Show” –– Curation, Organization, and Installation
2024-2022 UMSV Studio Art Majors –– Faculty Advisor
2023 UMSV Visiting Artist Series –– Creator and Event Coordinator for Fall Semester
2023-2022 UMSV Tenure-Track Faculty Search Committee –– Member
2023-2022 UMSV Faculty Affairs Committee –– Member
2023-2022 UMSV Food Pantry Mural –– Faculty Advisor and Creative Director
2023-2022 UMSV Alumni Children’s Book –– Faculty Advisor and Creative Director
2022 UMSV Ad Hoc Design Grant Committee “Come to Believe / Seton College” –– Member
2019 NYU Latinos Who Lunch Live Podcast –– Director and Event Coordinator
2017 Wellesley College Latinos Who Lunch Live Podcast –– Event Coordinator
2017-2014 Wellesley College Pendleton West Art Department Renovation Design Committee –– Member
2017 Wellesley College Tenure-Track Faculty Search Committee –– Member
2016 Wellesley College Adjunct Assistant Professor of Studio Art Search Committee –– Member
2015 Wellesley College Collective Residency Project –– Founder and Curator
2014 Harvard University William Copley's S.M.S. online interactive archive –– Art Director & Photographer
SELECT TECHNICAL EXPERIENCE
2021 Artist Assistant. Justin Favela Studio. The Church, Sag Harbor, NY (Fabrication and installation)
2020 Brand Ideation/Creative Consultant. Mamask. Seoul, South Korea
2020–2019 Graphic Designer/Video Marketing. Yonkers Honda. Yonkers, NY
2017 Videographer. Soldier the Opera (Diamond in the Rough Productions). Atlanta, GA
2015 Exhibition Ideation & Photographer for "The Game Worlds of Jason Rohrer." Davis Museum. Wellesley, MA
(Published in NYT Magazine, The Boston Globe, Cooling Hunting, Creators Project & Artforum)
2014 Art Director/Photographer. William Copley's S.M.S. online interactive archive. Harvard University.
2013-2009 Manager/Studio Photographer. Portrait Simple. Newton, MA
(Managed the operation of a high-end, high-volume, retail photography studio with 15+ employees)
2009 Art Preparator. MCQ Fine Art Advisory. Las Vegas, NV
2009-2008 Artist Assistant. David Ryan Studio. Las Vegas, NV (Fabrication, crating, shipping, and installation)
2009-2007 Gallery and Curatorial Assistant. Trifecta Gallery. May 2008- June 2009. Las Vegas, NV
2009-2004 Green Screen Studio Photographer. Cashman Photo Enterprises. Las Vegas, NV