Raymond A Thomas

The desire to create has consumed Raymond A. Thomas for as long as he can  remember. Today, this St. Louis native has cultivated his passion into a vibrant  multi-disciplinary artistic practice; that continues to expand with purpose and daring. Thomas received a merit scholarship in 1984 to attend the  prestigious School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where he studied painting,  filmmaking and graphic design. In 1988, soon after graduating, Thomas was hired  by Chicago-based Johnson Publishing Company Inc. where he served as art  director and creative manager for over 23-years. He also continued his life-long  missions of mentoring youth and creating art, with showings of his studio works in  Chicago and galleries nation-wide. Thomas has served as a board and committee  member for many noted Chicago art institutions including: Little Black Pearl, Black  Harvest Film Festival, Chicago International Film Festival Black Perspectives  Sidebar, Chicago Public Art Group and South Side Community Art Center (SSCAC).  

In 2013 his piece “The Conversion of Mary Magdalene” won “best painting” and  “best of show” awards at the Black Creativity juried art exhibition held  the Museum of Science and industry in Chicago. Thomas is a three-time recipient  (2014, 2015, 2018) of the Individual Arts Program Creative Projects Grant from the  City of Chicago’s Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events Grants  Department.