Coming directly from Cincinnati, Ohio to the Maldives, the award-winning glow-in-the-dark artist Tom Bacher will bring W Hotels’ passion for design to life at W Maldives, with a residency running from 21 May until 5 June 2016.
Tom will use the iconic W Maldives as his own workshop and art gallery, showcasing his luminous art and holding art classes for in-house guests and W talents alike. Inspired by New York City’s vibrant 24/7 skyline and the Indian Ocean’s colourful marine life, twinkling stars and phosphorescent plankton, the luminous artist will transform the tropical playground into a magical island set to ‘Let It Glow’ with sparkling neon colours.
Tom primarily works with crystals of phosphorescence that he mixes with acrylic paints, the amalgam of which results in a half-life. The paints on the canvas absorb light during the day; as light fades, the colours change, and when darkness invades the studio or gallery, the pictures start glowing, popping off the wall.
“I do paintings that actually incorporate an element of time and change,” Bacher describes his creative process. He recalls that his fascination with phosphorescence stems from the glow-in-the-dark toys, religious statues, and rosaries so popular in the USA in the 1950s.
“I consider paintings that glow and emit their own light as new, just as Impressionism was new at one time,” says Tom Bacher. “I look at Impressionism as the art movement that captured the sun and daylight effects, while today, with luminous colours, it’s possible to capture the night effects because we’re looking at the paintings in the dark. I’ve been using luminous pigments exclusively for 38 years, and I’m still discovering new things.”
Tom Bacher’s work appears in numerous museums, corporate and private collections in the USA and has been exhibited in Paris, Zurich, and Brussels. The artist has also showcased his paintings in West of Soho Gallery, Cincinnati, Ohio and New York’s OK Harris Gallery with world famous art dealer Ivan Karp for 20 years. Bacher is currently represented by Cincinnati Art Galleries, Ohio and 100 Titres Gallery in Brussels, Belgium.
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