Thomas J Price works across disciplines, predominantly in sculpture, but also in film and photography. Conceptually focused, Price engages with issues of power, representation, interpretation and perception both in society and in art.

Price’s large-scale sculptures depict imagined subjects, whose features are an amalgamation of sources. Observed individuals and stereotypes represented in the media are mixed with references to ancient, classical and neoclassical sculptures. These works serve as psychological portraits of the viewer by revealing socially learned attitudes and understandings as they project identities on to the depicted characters. Using methods of presentation, material, scale, and detail Price aims to challenge viewers’ expectations and assumptions.

Price’s practice extends beyond a strategy of figuration. In one example, sculptures of polished bronze are luxurious and monumental, first appearing to be abstract and rooted in the history of 20th century sculpture. They set out to challenge artistic institutions and the traditional holders of power, to create an alternative narrative and to highlight the structures in place that reinforce cultural values.

‘I want [this] sculpture to be an opportunity for people to connect emotionally with an image of someone they might not have noticed before,’ Price says. ‘ …Often the most powerful person in the room is the person in the background, or fiddling, or not sitting bolt upright smiling.’

Born in London in 1981, Price studied at Chelsea College of Art and the Royal College of Art in London. Price has held solo exhibitions at prestigious institutions including The Power Plant, Toronto, Canada; The National Portrait Gallery, London, UK; Royal Academy of Arts, London, UK; MAC, Birmingham, UK; Royal College of Art, London, UK; Harewood House, Leeds, UK; and the Yorkshire Sculpture Park, West Bretton, UK.

Price’s work is held in prestigious collections such as The Donum Estate, Sonoma, CA; Government Art Collection, London, UK; The Wedge Collection (Canada), Derwent London (UK), Murderme (UK) and the Rennie Collection (Canada).

Price was the recipient of the Arts Council England Helen Chadwick Fellowship in 2009, and has been commissioned to create a public artwork in Hackney in 2022, commemorating the Windrush generation.