I, Wonder

I, Wonder stands at 2m tall and portrays my friend Leonie Dean ( @tenacious_wheelchair_warrior ) in her handcrafted Wonder Woman cosplay. While she's enjoyed cosplaying many different characters, Wonder Woman has come to mean something special for Leonie, a source of strength and inspiration while dealing with some particularly difficult challenges including facing life with a disability and being a full time wheelchair user. An important touchstone for Leonie is that Wonder Woman always retains her kindness and empathy even when asked to do extraordinary things.

Leonie inspires even as she draws inspiration from the character and the costume. She poses in her chair which has become an important tool for her own empowerment; a part of her identity, but not defining it. She is forward and strong.

The Greek frieze behind her alludes to her love of horses and riding which she continues to do. The cats by her feet are reminders of loss and hope as Dodge (aka the Ginger Ninja) died during the making of the painting, but Jackie Chan continues to huddle close.

Her empathy is obvious in the way she loves doing charity events especially for children who are unwell or disabled themselves. Wonder Woman and her chair help them see that they can still be whatever they want- they can still be a superhero... that they are superheroes.

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Born and raised in Adelaide Tom came to painting after a rich and eclectic tapestry of life experiences and now makes high fidelity works focused on asking questions.

With a background in health sciences as well as architecture and design Tom's paintings are deeply rooted in the notion of critical thinking and the forging of human identity. Concepts of community versus individuality permeate the work as well as complexity versus minimalism.

The use of realism in traditional oil paints gives pause to the rapid consumptive nature of the modern digital image. They ask the viewer to rest a while, observe and let the painting take one's thoughts where it will. The works do not regale with a bombastic answer but rather sequester time for a deeper question.

He has been a semi-finalist in the Doug Moran National Portrait Prize in 2016, 2019 and again in 2022. He was the winner of the Kennedy Art Prize People's Choice Award 2021 and 2023. He was a Bluethumb Art Prize Finalist in 2022 as well as a Finalist in the Darling Portrait Prize 2022 at the National Portrait Gallery, Canberra.

Since 2013 Tom has been involved in the acclaimed pop-up fine art workshop school The Art Academy in Adelaide run by internationally renowned artist Robin Eley. Working first as a technical assistant and later as an instructor Tom has continued the never-ending journey of refining his craft and sharing that passion with others; for a lesson in painting is a lesson in thinking and continues to be to this day.