This following biography was researched, compiled, and written by Geoffrey K. Fleming, Director, Southold Historical Society, Southold, NY.

Reynolds Thomas (b. January 21, 1927)

Painter and sculptor.  Born in Wilmington, Delaware, to Anna F. (b. 1887) and Harry R. Thomas (b. 1885).  The family resided on West Fourteenth Street in Wilmington, Delaware, where his father was a butcher with his own retail store.  Reynolds Thomas studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia and the Instituto Nacional De Bellas Artes in Mexico. 

At one time, Reynolds Thomas resided in Huntington, Long Island, New York, before he later moving up to Maine.  His works were a long time feature of the Country Art Gallery, which was first located in Westbury and then later in Locust Valley, Long Island.  In 1963 the Long Island newspaper Newsdaycommented upon a recent exhibition of his works, stating "…each canvas has a poignant integrity of its own."  A 1967 newspaper announcement regarding an exhibition of Thomas's works at the Country Art Gallery noted that "The exhibition will include drawings, watercolors and tempera inspired by his latest European sojourn and his Maine surroundings."  Another article remarked that his work "…has most often been described as reminiscent of Andrew Wyeth, Edward Hopper, and Winslow Homer…"

In 1979 the New York Times reported on a Long Island exhibition in which Thomas's works were featured, and noted that it: "…is one of those summer shows that have no particular direction… [however] …It is best in this exhibition to look around for the choices such as Reynolds Thomas's portrait of a fisherman whose granite face is provocatively carved in color against the severe landscape."  Other artists featured in the exhibition included, among others, the noted American painter Robert Henri (1865-1929).  In addition to Long Island, Thomas also lived and worked in Genoa, Italy, and in Maine.

Reynolds Thomas is a member of the American Water Color Society, New York.  He holds an honorary degree from the Academica Tiberina, located in Rome, Italy, which was awarded in 1972.  He has won several prizes during his long career, including the Thouron Prize from the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, in 1952 and again in 1954; the International Grand Prix de Rome, in 1971; the International Grand Prize and Trophy, La Stanza Letteraria, Rome, Italy, in 1972; and the International Contemporary Art Prize, presented in Monte Carlo, Monaco, also in 1972.  

Thomas was widely exhibited both in American and overseas during his career.  His known exhibitions include:  Country Art Gallery, Westbury & Locust Valley, NY; 1960, 1961 (solo), 1962 (solo), 1963 (solo), 1967 (solo), 1968 (solo), 1971 (solo), 1977, 1978 (solo), 1979, 1981 (group & solo), 1982; La Napoule Art Foundation, Cannes, France, 1962 (solo); Kennedy Galleries, New York, NY; 1964, 1965, 1967, 1969 (all solos); "The World of Boating in Art" Exhibition, Roosevelt Raceway, Long Island, NY, 1964; Farrell Gallery, Santa Fe, NM, 1965 (solo); William A. Farnsworth Museum of Art, Rockland, ME, 1966 (solo); Hotel de Paris, Monte Carlo, Monaco, 1966 (solo); International Art Center, Milan, Italy, 1971, 1972 (solo); International Grand Prix of Contemporary Art, Monte Carlo, Monaco, 1972; Galerie Michel-Ange, Monte Carlo, Monaco, 1972 (solo); Galleria al Porto, Genoa, Italy, 1970s (solo); American Water Color Society, New York, NY, (u.d.); Audubon Artists, New York, NY, (u.d.); Delaware Art Center, Delaware, (u.d.); Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY, (u.d.); National Academy of Design, New York, NY, (u.d.); Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA, (u.d.); Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, PA, (u.d.); Museum of Fine Art, New Mexico, (u.d.). 

A number of his works reside in public and private collections, which include:  Collection of the late Princess Grace de Monaco (portrait, 1971), Royal Palace, Monte Carlo, Monaco; Delaware Art Center, Wilmington, DE; Delaware Art Museum, Wilmington, DE; Farnsworth Museum, Rockland, ME; Hempstead Bank, Long Island, NY; Northern Indiana Art Association, Hammond, IN; Northern Trust, Chicago, IL; Texas Instruments; The Garcia Ski  Corporation, Tea Neck, NJ; The Vatican (two portraits of Pope Paul VI); Wilmington Trust Company, Delaware; and others.  The largest number of his works reside in private collections throughout the United States and Europe.