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Thomas
Paul Raggio

Reaching Down to You
18 x 12.5’’

8 Colour individual woodblock & metal pressing on custom french paper (variation in colors due to woodblock pressing).

Edition of 9

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Thomas’ work is composed of hard edges and thin lines set against an abstract field or pictorial space. Each color has a quickness that is relative to the colors surrounding it; this gives his work visual movement and dislocates the viewer. He uses linear and geometric forms to explore design and mathematical concepts found broadly throughout world culture. They are improvised from a wide range of sources such as conversations with scholars in various fields of music, architecture, cryptology & engineering, personal experiences and travels. He contemplates every color, mark, and placement of the line to formulate what he calls rhythmic velocities: relationships of color and motion that give life to the composition, creating a heartbeat. His interest in the duality of math and design: through repetition, a line made of color becomes a rhythmic pattern that is reflected in his compositions. This concept is found when composing music, organic landscapes and architectural structures. By referencing these sources, his abstractions transcend their formal components, reaching beyond a minimalist canon.

Thomas Paul Raggio, (b. 1987, Philadelphia, PA) lives and works in Philadelphia. He holds an MFA from Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers University and a Four-Year Certificate from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Professor Raggio has taught Color Theory, Visual Thinking, Painting, Drawing, and currently Art Appreciation at Rutgers University.  He has also lectured Abstract Expressionism, 19th-century American Art, and participated in many programs promoting the visual arts. He has exhibited works nationally and internationally and his works are in private and public collections in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, and Australia.