Aerials -
Western Kansas Lot -
Aerial Study I -
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Southwest Iowa -
Near Fort Dodge -
South of Iowa City -
Near Great Bend Kansas -
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![Aerial Study II [In Progress]](http://static.wix.com/media/e22235b12420bff6c355d65cf61c470f.wix_mp_128)
Aerial Study II [In Progress] -
Paintings in Progress
YIELD: New American Landscapes. [Show Statement, 2009]
When I first came to Iowa in 2005, I wasnt entirely impressed with the landscape. My opinion changed however after some spring bike rides on the small roads surrounding Grinnell. I started to really like this place and explored that new interest, drawing idyllic landscapes. I later started working on a small farm outside of town and reading about the politics of agriculture and food. I took a semester off last spring to work on farms in Europe, and upon returning, found myself driving around Iowa not quite sure how I felt about this place anymore. I still loved the aesthetics of the row crops, the grids, the seed and implement companies but I had to find a way to reconcile my aesthetic attraction to agriculture in Iowa with the devastating environmental, social, and economic repercussions. We have what Laura Jackson refers to as a sort of Stockholm syndrome. The culture of agriculture is so deeply rooted here that it becomes impossible to see through the rolling fields of corn and weathered barns. No matter how many articles and books Michael Pollan writes, its not going to change the way people actually look at this state. Its why today, I believe more than ever, we need landscapes. Its certainly the driving force behind mine. All that said, this body of work has by no means gotten it all figured out. On April 27th though, this is where I stand with that exploration. Large oil paintings approach our landscape on a macro scale, a suite of prints on the micro. If nothing more, I hope the work can give you a new lens for interpreting and questioning the landscape around us. A lens perhaps, that acknowledges the problems, but still allows for an aesthetic appreciation. After all, we live here. It helps to enjoy the view.
Postcards from Iowa -
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Postcards from Iowa. [Show Statement]
At Kew Gardens in London, or for that matter at any botanical garden, I enjoy traveling from the Palm House to the Alpine House, the Temperate House to the Desert House. I like how, cobbled together in one place, we can browse through such a multitude of species in a single confined space. Driving out from Grinnell on Highway 6, or for that matter most anywhere in the Midwest, I also enjoy seeing seed demonstration plots. In a warped sense, these plant showcases are our own sort of botanical garden. Each seed sign from Monsanto's 2008 demonstration plot has been drawn and screenprinted in the form of postcards. When we travel, we buy postcards that represent important monuments, individuals, or more subtle facets of culture and send them back to our family and friends. I hope that you will take a postcard, mail it, and share a little bit of Iowa with someone back home.
These postcards are free to take! Please pick your favorite strain and disseminate as you see fit.
48 Individual Screenprints. Editions of 80. All 4.25" x 6"
CV Education
INDIANA UNIVERSITY, Henry Radford Hope School of Fine Art. MFA Candidate in Painting [2013]
GRINNELL COLLEGE. BA in Studio Art with Honors [2009]
Solo Exhibitions
Aerial Landscapes at Campbell Steele Gallery in Marion, Iowa [2010]
Featured on University of Iowa's Daily Palette March 12th, April 13th, and May 18th [2010]
Yield: NewAmerican Landscapes in Grinnell College’s Edith Smith Gallery [2009]
50112: New Landscapes by Thomas Agran in Grinnell College’s Edith Smith Gallery [2007]
Group Exhibitions
Lure of the Local at the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art [2012]
Iowa: Inspired by Landscape in the University of Iowa's Old Capitol Museum [2012]
MFA Group Show in Indiana University's Grunwald Gallery [2012]
Grinnell College Juried Student Art Salon [2009]
Annual Grinnell Community Art Exhibition [2009]
Eight in Grinnell College’s Edith Smith Gallery [2007]
Grinnell College Juried Student Art Salon [2007]
Grinnell College Juried Student Art Salon [2006]
Selected Awards
Inez Henely 1914 Memorial Prizes in Art [2009]
Merit Award in Printmaking in the Grinnell College Juried Student Art Salon [2009]
Best in Show in the Grinnell College Juried Student Art Salon [2007]
Grinnell College Art Department Sophomore Prize [2007]
Public Commissions
World Food Prize. Des Moines, Iowa. [2011]
Grinnell Veterans Memorial Mural. Grinnell, Iowa [ 2008]
Collections
Cedar Rapids Museum of Art. Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Farm Credit Services, Corporate Collection. Omaha, Nebraska
Mercy Hospital. Iowa City, IA
Grinnell College Prairie Studies Permanent Collection. Grinnell, IA
Resume My Design philosophy
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My Inspiration
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My Materials
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Contact thomasagran_gmail.com
2943 PRAIRIE DU CHIEN RD.
IOWA CITY, IA 52240
319.541.4554
