Tom Sanford

The American artist, Tom Sanford, was born in New York in 1975 and spent his formative years in the United Kingdom.
He has lived in Harlem since 1994.
While generally considered a recluse, he has exhibited art work internationally over the course of the past two decades.

Tom was represented by the Danish top gallery, Galleri Faurschou until 2007.

"A Bodega Romance"
- By Tom Sanford

"The idea in this painting was to make a sort of romantic/nostalgic image of summer nights in Harlem.
In the panting the couple are in front of the Katrina Deli, the bodega that is on my block in Harlem (141st street and Hamilton Place).
In my neighborhood, and throughout Harlem, summer nights are very active on the streets, as locals hang out outside and party in the streets. You will often find groups of people hanging out in front of bodegas drinking beer (or in this case Hennessy), smoking hookah, playing music, sometimes BBQing or playing games like dominos in the street.

For this painting I endeavored to use a pop-expressionist-margical-realist style to evoke the magical feeling of summer nights in Harlem.
The painting is littered with the typical debris and texture of NYC.
A pigeon on a fire hydrant with a “Snoeman” graffiti sticker on it.
The bag of Takis chips with a rat in it. A Lucky 7s lotto scratch off ticket.
The street sign poll with typical NYC graffiti stickers from other local famed NYC vandals such as “DOMS” “E UNUM” and “BlusterOne” in the case of the bluster sticker I chose his ubiquitous “Bluster Loves Laurie” sticker in which the graffiti artist proclaims his love for his wife as I am always stuck by the sweet sentiment of this sticker that I see all over my neighborhood and believe it to be a uniquely romantic graffiti sticker, perfect for this image.

I hope this work reflects the beauty, life and love that is coursing through the street life of my city.
For it is this life and love, that despite all the garbage, noise and chaos that is endemic to the city, and maybe because of all that, make New York, and particularly Harlem, a magical place." - Tom

"Stand by 200 minutes"
- By Tom Sanford

"Any of you who follow the daily tedium that comprises my work are very aware that the dam and I spent a grueling spring break week at Disney World.
Disney isn't really my thing, I don't like most of the movies, I don't enjoy amusement park rides, and get enough of people, lines and waiting at home in NYC that I''m not looking to get more on vacation. But I DO like complaining about stuff and find a sort of perverse meaning in mild suffering. So Disney wasn't that bad. And my children loved it, like crack heads love crack. It was an emotional rollercoster that took us to our limits. For my part I came to appreciate the lines. The waiting is the best part. Besides you're waiting to be on some unpleasent ride or to eat some crappy food, so I came to view the waiting as the least bad part of the experience. Like new-agers like meditation, I relished the cue. 
This is my painting of it."- Tom