Thom "Tex" Wheeler makes art that springs from a joy of living and an unflinching optimism. Thom was born in Alice Texas in 1946. After serving as a sergeant in the US Army Medical Corp from 1969-1971 he attended Sam Houston University and graduated in 1975. His art career began in Houston Texas as a sculptor of monumental works of stone, wood and metal. He was commissioned by designers and architects across the United States to create large-scale sculptures that adorned restaurants, hotels, offices, private homes and yachts. The size of these pieces allowed him more canvas to interpret the feelings his clients wanted to convey. His work embodied the exuberance of the oil boom in his native Texas. In 1985 Thom left the big city for Taos, New Mexico. His sculpture and painting turned to a very distinct New Mexican theme. He creates aluminum, bronze and copper wall sculptures that resemble giant pieces of jewelry, embellished with semi-precious stone.More recently he has taken to painting with the same sensibilities used in his sculpture. He paints with a palette knife, which allows him to work the oils similar to his texturing of metals. He feels oils are more alive and his application of thick, saturated colors creates complexity in his simplified compositions. Thom has gained much recognition for his religious themed art. His knowledge and fascination with history and a variety of religions has taken him on an interesting journey. He enjoys mixing Southwest or Native American beliefs with those of other religions to cast a more modern approach on how we view religion in our lives. A Celtic cross can have a Zuni bear embedded in the middle, or a butterfly might flutter onto a Star of David. Anything is possible. Thom’s work is constantly evolving and he is never bored with creating art and living life to its fullest. He is truly a renaissance man who embraces architecture, gardening, history and cooking with the same skill and passion that he does with his art. Traveling throughout the United States and Europe has been a great source of joy and inspiration for him and a passion he shares with his wife, Lavinia.