“If you hear a voice within you say, ”You cannot paint, then by all means paint”, and that voice will be silenced.” — Vincent Van Gogh
ARTIST STATEMENT
As a mixed media artist based in North Carolina, my work is a vibrant exploration of personal experience and emotion, utilizing a diverse array of materials including collage, acrylics, pastels, encaustic wax, sand, and crushed glass. Each piece is a unique narrative, often inspired by the beauty of nature—florals and oceanic themes frequently emerge in my work, reflecting the serenity and complexity of the world around us.
My artistic process is deeply intertwined with my journey living with multiple sclerosis. Art serves as a vital outlet for expressing the myriad emotions that accompany this experience, allowing me to navigate pain and uncertainty. The layers of texture and color in my pieces are not just aesthetic choices; they embody my stories, emotions, and the struggles I face.
Through the use of stencils and patterns, I create compositions that resonate with viewers on multiple levels, inviting them to engage with the artwork in a personal way. I hope that my art not only evokes a sense of beauty but also fosters connection and understanding, offering a glimpse into the complexities of life and the resilience of the human spirit.
In every stroke and every layer, I find a sense of freedom and healing. My creations are an invitation to others to reflect, to feel, and to find their own stories within the colors and forms.
About Tommy McDonell, PhD
Tommy B. McDonell is a multi-talented abstract artist whose unique style is an animated and innovative fusion of different mediums. Tommy’s artwork has been widely exhibited, it has received countless awards and it graces many collections.
Born in Michigan, she received a BA from Lindenwood College in St. Charles, MO, and an MPS in Interactive Telecommunications from New York University/Tisch School for the Arts, and her doctorate in TESOL from New York University/Steinhardt. Dr. McDonell taught as an adjunct and taught preservice teachers to incorporate technology into their classroom. And she worked for the NYC Public Libraries teaching seniors and children to use computers.
She was diagnosed with MS in 1995, three years after the death of her first husband.
Two years after her second husband, Bruce George McDonell, retired, they moved to Pinehurst, North Carolina. They were relatively new to the area when he died of colon cancer, in 2010.
“I felt like somewhat of an outsider in the community,” she says. “I had stopped driving due to the MS, so I had little mobility and worsening pain.”
So McDonell threw herself into the world of art.
Prior to moving to Pinehurst, McDonell had only taken one art class in watercolor painting. She decided to pick up an alcohol ink course at the Artists League of the Sandhills in Aberdeen, NC, with Sanford artist Karen Walker.
“I loved it,” she says. “I found when I painted, it put me in another place.”
Since then, the artist has experimented with a wide variety of mediums, gravitating toward mixed media, collage and encaustics, all of which appeal to her need to make unique art. Collage strikes a special chord with her.
“It allows me to go more deeply into the abstract,” she says. McDonell says jokingly that her art should be displayed on a lazy Susan, because there is more than one way to view her work.
McDonell’s preference for the abstract is clear. For her, it is more than just a style.
“When I developed MS, the doctors told me it would not affect my cognition, but it did,” she says. “Reading became difficult, speaking too.”
She says that the numbness, the buzzing like a “radio station” in her hands and feet, the pain — all of the physical baggage seems more bearable to her than the neurological damage.
“Not long before, I’d been teaching the ins and outs of the English language for a living,” she says. “Now, words sometimes evade me. But abstract art is a completely different form of communication; shapes and colors have a language of their own.”
Growing up, McDonell never dreamed of going into the arts.
“In high school, I was told my colors were much too bright, and I couldn’t draw,” she says. “And if you can’t draw, obviously you couldn’t be an artist.”
Even as an adult, McDonell received similar criticism from other painters. But it’s unlikely she’ll tone down her bright palette anytime soon.
Because of her MS, she occasionally loses vision, and the world flares out to become gray or black. She says color helps remind her that she isn’t having one of these episodes. Even the walls in her home are brightly painted.
“Color means everything to me,” says McDonell.
McDonell sells her paintings locally and internationally. She’s won various awards, and frequently shows her work in local galleries.
McDonell also donates paintings to various nonprofit organizations, including Habitat for Humanity and Say Yes to Hope, a nonprofit organization based in Texas that provides information, resources, support and hope to anyone affected by liver tumors.
McDonell plans to make donations to nonprofits this year as well.
“Every month this year, I will be giving 5 to 10 percent of all sale proceeds to a nonprofit,” she says.
McDonell’s work was exhibited at One of a Kind Gallery LLC (now closed), in Pinehurst, North Carolina for three years, and at The Artists League of the Sandhills, in Aberdeen, NC, at The Arts Council of Moore County and virtually on Manhattan Arts International.
“We were very pleased to have Tommy McDonell’s art work in the gallery,” said owner Anne Crabbe at One of a Kind Gallery LLC. Tommy (who goes by the name Leap4artnyc) sells: prints, note cards and bags on her website in addition to her paintings.
To learn more about McDonell’s artistic process and the different materials she uses, or to view her available paintings, visit https://leap4artnyc.com/. Her work may also be found on Instagram and Facebook.
References:
A World of Color: Unexpected Circumstances Lead to Creative Life for Pinehurst Artist, by Mary Moore, The Pilot.
