Thompson, Keith

Keith Thompson was born on February 26th, 1996 in Nassau, Bahamas. He pursued an AA of Arts at the College of the Bahamas, choosing instead to branch out into a more robust practice. Thompson is a studio artist, curator, and framer.

Thompson creates works about his experience growing up in a neighbourhood rife with crime and gang-culture. His paintings exercise his own dread of easily falling into criminality. Thompson acknowledges that his image as a black male subjects him to these expectations -- and with delicate brush strokes, his own vulnerability and humanness are pronounced, countering the harsh perspective in which society views him. As of late he has been creating works directed to social injustices derived from colonization, and the duality of hypervisibility and invisibility as a black artist.

Using direct symbolism in his compositions Thompson attempts to convey messages of underling issues represented in the paintings as a catalyst to greater conversations during the viewing experience. His works lend to cultural conversations that have been neglected or set aside due to socio-political stifling, thus giving a voice to those without the platform or courage to speak. By placing these images within a gallery setting, Thompson asks us to look at images that are associated with grim reality of criminal activity, gang culture, and social injustice, through a nuanced lens.