SAN ANTONIO, TX.- The McNay Art Museum’s latest Artists Looking at Art (ALA) series features 14 intimate paintings from emerging artist, Thomas Stokes III. Stokes, 21, is a San Antonio-native and part-time Gallery Services Officer at the Museum. Primarily self-taught, Stoke’s work focuses on the human form and portraiture using acrylic on canvas.

“As in museums across the globe, Thomas demonstrates the high levels of creativity found in the staff, from curators to security personnel,” said René Paul Barilleaux, Head of Curatorial Affairs. “His portraits in particular pay homage to his artist-heroes—Picasso, Francis Bacon—among others.”

The ALA series salutes the vitality of the contemporary art community in the San Antonio area. The McNay Contemporary Collectors Forum (MCCF) initiated the Artists Looking at Art series and jointly sponsors it with the McNay’s education department.

The artworks on view at the McNay through January 12, 2020 are from a series of abstract portraits drawn from the artist’s imagination. It is also the artist’s debut presentation in a museum.

“I’ve been making art for as long as I can remember,” said Stokes. “I try to incorporate different emotions that I’m feeling at the time in the different faces, and bring it all together while abstracting the figure.”

Guests can find Stokes in galleries throughout the Museum helping keep the McNay a safe place for all to enjoy.