After picking up my rental Friday evening I packed my bags and prepared to hit the road early Saturday morning. I picked up my travelling partner and prepared for the 5 hour road trip to Jacksonville, Florida. It was a long trip but a great time to reflect on my journey thus far and reflect is exactly what I did. I expected by 4 week sabbatical leave time to go by quickly so I was very meticulous in my plan moving forward. In doing so, I was able to accomplish an absorbent amount of my personal goals regarding my sabbatical project. Every day was accounted for including the weekend. I was very good and giving myself room for disappointments and new contacts and opportunities regarding my father’s artwork and meeting with individuals who knew and worked closely with my father. The drive allowed me to prioritize my final week 4 and plan moving forward to continue the completion of my project of 2017.
My stepmother and stepsister who I have not seen in years relocated to Central Florida some years back. Social media is a great way to keep into contact with family, friends, and associates but there is nothing like a face to face meeting, that even beats a phone call. I was very excited to see my step mother Barbara and step sister Buffy after so many years! I had a great time with them and it was definitely worth the 10 hour roundtrip drive. We spent most of our time together reminiscing on the good times of my dad’s life and the sad times surrounding my father’s death. It was great being able to catch them up on the family in Miami and Costa Rica and to get updates on their family. One of the most memorable moments were looking through family photos and also capturing the portraits and artwork my father had given my stepmother Barbara during their time together. He painted roses for her for their wedding anniversary, a portrait of her, as well as paintings of her daughters and grandson. There were also paintings from our home in Miami Shores. I enjoyed having dinner with my extended family and I look forward to more family gathering. There was so many new things I learned about my father that I had not known about. Quirky things that I learned and certain things that I had forgotten about. My other step sister who still resides in Miami provided me with some great leads on where to find my father’s paintings in public spaces. This sabbatical journey has been more about my father’s artwork and paintings. It has been a walk through this entire life and sadly death. It has been an eye opening experience that has changed my life forever. This experience would not have been as fulfilling if it was completed in a piecemeal. Being able to FOCUS and direct all my TIME and ENERGY into my father’s artwork and professional journey as an artist for an entire month has changed me. I feel even more connected to my father and I am excited to share the final product of his cataloged artwork. If you have a private art piece or have worked with my father in the past, I would love to hear from you. You can email me at foureyespublishingllc@gmail.com. To stay current with me and my projects, please visit my website at www.tashathomas.org and follow me on Instagram at @dr.tasha.thomas or look up #findingmyfatherspaintings #oscarthomassr
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On Wednesday I was super excited to pick up Laura the videographer from the Fort Lauderdale airport. My employer, Charles River, not only approved me for a 4 week paid sabbatical leave but also arranged for a videographer to document my journey. After settling into her hotel located in Miami, Florida we immediately went to work. Our first stop was to the famous Little Havana. It is a tourist destination and considered a Florida Heritage Historic destination. The Maximo Domino Park is located in the heart of Little Havana and I was proud to share with Laura that the backdrop was my father’s mural from the 1st ever Summit of the Americas which was held December 9-11th, 1994. The mural depicts then president Bill Clinton and 33 heads of state. My father was given a very short period of time to complete the massive mural. He worked with graphic designer Oscar Herrera and students from Miami’s Southwest High School in order to meet the deadline. Laura was able to capture the vibrancy of the mural and the environment that surrounded it.
While we were filming I met Parks & Recreation employee Miguel. He was excited to meet me and shared that people always asked about the artist and wanted to know what he looked like. I pulled out my phone and showed him a picture of my dad. He asked if it was okay if he printed my dad’s photo and displayed it at the welcome center office. I was blown away at the request and agreed, a minutes later we were exchanging information and I was emailing him my dad’s photograph. Laura also was able to capture the art work located at my home as well as interview me regarding my sabbatical experience. I was able to share the many wonderful adventures and discoveries that occurred since I started my journey. We also visited the Belafonte TACOLCY center and interviewed CEO Horace Roberts in front of one of my father’s mural. We then went on to the History Miami Museum and was able to capture me listening to one of the audio interviews of my dad back in 1989. The audio file is currently a part of the museum’s folk art archive collection. I would like to send a special thank you to the History Miami Museum for allowing us to film onsite and to Ashley and Dawn for all their assistance. Laura was able to truly capture the magnitude of this experience for me and the many people lives that my father touched with his art and his humanitarian heart. Friday photographed murals and was able to visit the historic Overtown Lyric Theater. A total of three pieces of my father’s art work is displayed in the gift shop and in the black archives reading room. We wrapped up the week with lunch with award winning photographer James Rush. He is the owner of Made You Look, LLC. He won medals for photographs that he took of my father’s murals. I was elated to see my dad’s artwork professionally displayed is beautifully matted frames ready to be mounted. I was blown away by his skills as a photographer and the all the images of my father’s art work that unfortunately are of buildings that have since been burned down, destroyed, painted over, or murals that are of need of repair. Each photograph highlighted the genius and sheer perfection and my father’s skills as a large scale billboard and mural artist. If you have a private art piece or have worked with my father in the past, I would love to hear from you. You can email me at foureyespublishingllc@gmail.com. To stay current with me and my projects, please visit my website at www.tashathomas.org and follow me on Instagram at @dr.tasha.thomas or look up #findingmyfatherspaintings #oscarthomassr I feel like all my years of watching Matlock and detective sitcoms have culminated into this satisfying moment, which is happening right now! After meeting with D.C. Clark last week Thursday, he shared our meeting on his Facebook page. This led me to many new contacts pertaining to my dad and his artwork. Also, my meeting with Altine, which came recommended by Mr. Horace Roberts, also came with many new contacts. All eager and willing to share their relationship with my father and what how his art impacted the community and their own personal lives.
Everything is coming together as I imagined it would but it is still an overwhelming feeling. This Saturday I felt this urge to visit a park that my father use to mentor at and do free art workshops for the community kids and seniors. It was a Saturday afternoon and the community center was locked. I tried peaking though the windows in hopes of finding an older employee that may have remembered my father but it was useless the lights were out and there was no one in sight. As I turned to head to the car a young man from across the street yelled, “It’s closed, the park is closed”. I smiled and said thank you and continued to head to my car. Something told me to turn around and talk to the young man. I turned around introduced myself and asked if he knew when the park would reopen. He said not for a few weeks there’s a water line break. I asked if he knew anyone that worked there, assuming he lived locally, he smiled and said I work here that’s how I know. I instantly noticed his t-shirt that said STAFF printed on it. Delvin was a park employee and was aware of the park hours and details surrounding the parks closing. Reluctantly, I asked if there were any painting on the wall. He said yes a huge mural but it’s before our time. My heart started the race because I knew my father frequented the park in the early to mid-1980s. When he said the mural was of Dr. Martin Luther King I wanted to scream. We exchanged information and I am excited to return in hopes of discovering that the mural in deed was painted by my father. This is one of many stories that have occurred throughout my sabbatical. I am so grateful for this experience. Also, this weekend I was in search of a mural of the late Dewey W. Knight Jr. located at a local hospital. I am still looking for that painting but my search lead me to another painting located in the Downtown Miami Government Center. Best of all, I was able to get in contact with his son who has several of my father’s artwork including portraits of his parents. Dewey W. Knight Jr. was a pioneer in his roles as a Miami-Dade Administrator and Manager and have positively impacted the lives of children and families throughout Florida and beyond. During my journey there has been some disappointments. I underappreciated the number of my father’s murals that have already been damaged, destroyed, or replaced. However, disappointment never seemed to last. I would always be confronted with an individual that would renew and lift my spirits as they would talk about the impact of my father and his contributions as though he was still alive. While driving to a law office where I was told my father’s work was displayed I passed by my father’s gallery. At that very moment a group of men were painting over it with white paint. My heart started racing but at that moment I was reminded that this is why I was doing this…this is why I was documenting and cataloging his work. If you have a private art piece or have worked with my father in the past, I would love to hear from you. You can email me at foureyespublishingllc@gmail.com. To stay current with me and my projects, please visit my website at www.tashathomas.org and follow me on Instagram at @dr.tasha.thomas or look up #findingmyfatherspaintings #oscarthomassr This week has been wonderfully hectic and filled with so much exciting discoveries and encounters regarding my dad and his art work. This is the end of my second week of my sabbatical leave and I cannot believe everything that I have accomplished including the launching of this website and my blog entries. I was able to visit the Main Library located in downtown Miami; it is a beautiful building and has always been my all-time favorite library for many reasons. I recall a field trip with my 4th grade class where we visited the library along with the history museum. It stands out in my mind because I remember showing off to all my classmates that it was not my first visit. My daddy takes me there all the time, I said. I took the lead and toured the class through the children’s story telling section and all the ins and outs of owning a library card. It was true my father would take my brother and I to the Main Library all the time when he wanted to look up historical figures to paint and/or read up on. The Main Library has always been a special place for me. You can only imagine how absolutely invigorating it feels to be able to go into the archives of both the Main Library and the History Museum to read about your own father, the late Oscar Thomas Sr. I was able to find over 100 newspaper articles that he headlined or that featured my father and/or his artwork dating back to the early 1980’s when he first arrived to the United States from Central America. The most exciting part that I was not prepared for was actually reading the article in his words, in quotations… I had to pause…remember the words….close my eyes…..and picture my father speaking them. Often I would smile and say yes, that was him, he would say that.
I can now say that I have mastered both microfilm machines. The librarian finally stopped checking up on me when he realized, she knows what she is doing. I felt excited as I scrolled through my list of newspaper articles and roamed through drawers looking for specific dates of the articles I had previously researched and collected. I would then narrow down the article section, neighbors, living & arts, and finally the neighborhood where the story was featured. My heart would jump when I would finally locate the actual article. Excited to see if there was any undiscovered photos of my dad or his artwork or both. I would slowly and meticulously examine the entire page and the subsequent pages to follow. My heart would fill with joy when I came across the Holy Grail….a feature story of my dad with his photo AND his artwork. I am happy to say those moments were frequent and as exciting each time they occurred. If that were not enough I had a week filled with exciting interviews. I was able to meet with Mr. Horace Roberts, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Belafonte TACOLCY Center. This year marks the centers 50th anniversary, so I was honored to have been able to meet with Mr. Roberts during these busy and special times. Mr. Roberts is a founding member and also serves as the agency’s historian and photographer. He knew my father well so I was excited to learn more about the center as well as his relationship with my father. To my surprise Mr. Roberts gifted me the most special gift of all! Negatives that were over 30 years old of my father and his artwork. To say that this was a gift from God is no overstatement. My father passed away before the age of mainstream digital photography. I am so excited to get these negatives developed, from the looks of them they are phenomenal! In addition to the negatives, Mr. Roberts gave me a tour of the center and my father’s painting of Malcom X was prominently displayed at the entrance. Finally, I was happy to learn of a large beautiful piece that he owned in his private collection of my father’s artwork. It was a GREAT interview and a special day for me. To learn more about the Belafonte TACOLCY center visit http://www.tacolcy.org/ William D.C. Clark invited me to his home this week to discuss my father artist Oscar Thomas Sr. and what he meant to the local community. Our conversation was delightful, insightful, and comforting. To say D.C. is outspoken is the understatement of the year. He is loud, vocal, in your face, and most importantly honest. He will give it to you how he sees it and to hear only kind and thoughtful words used to describe my father and their relationship and his impact on the community was motivating. I truly enjoyed learning about how D.C. acquired Afro Books In Things, the premier African American Bookstore in Liberty City, from owners Dr. Wells and how his relationship blossomed with my father once they were neighbors. My father’s art gallery names Expressions by Oscar Thomas (his original logo is located above) was located adjacent to his bookstore. In addition to an entrepreneur and mentor, D.C. is also a published author. In his book entitled Lesson from the Other Side, D.C. briefly discusses my father and the benefits of having him as a neighbor. He described my father as a servant and I could not have said it better myself. He wanted to serve his community, serve his people, serve his family, and though my father was not a very religious man he was extremely spiritual and knew what it meant to be a servant of the Lord and he was. Hearing D.C. say he was retired reminded me how much work I needed to do. I am sure he work more than any full-time employed person that I know. He too is a servant to his community and I appreciate every minute he set aside to meet with me. When he said his door was always open I believed him. Last but certainly not least, I was able to meet up with my childhood best friend Patrice Campbell as well as Altine to photograph more of my father’s pieces from their personal collection as well as learn about more people who have my father’s pieces. This project has already exceeded my expectations. I have met some great contacts thanks to the help and support of so many people. Despite my hectic week, I still found time to get my done. An additional SCORE! If you have a private art piece or have worked with my father in the past, I would love to hear from you. You can email me at foureyespublishingllc@gmail.com. To stay current with me and my projects, please visit my website at www.tashathomas.org and follow me on Instagram at @dr.tasha.thomas or look up #findingmyfatherspaintings #oscarthomassr So the time arrived and my sabbatical began a little over a week ago. My mom would always tell me that all you have to do is start and that’s so true. In life all you have to do is active your thought through action. Get the wheels in motion and the universe will literally throw everything you need in your direction. This year will mark 20 years since my father passed away so I would like to think that this project that I have embarked on is 20 years in the making. Anyone who knows me, knows how I feel about my father. To say that he was an extraordinary human being is an understatement. To say that he was a phenomenal father isn’t sufficient. To say that he was genius as an artist only touches the surface. In time I realized the most difficult part in accepting his passing is knowing that everyone did not have the opportunity to meet him and experience the sheer pleasure of knowing him. Also, I look at where South Florida is, the mecca of art and culture, and know that he would have been a prominent and influential political activist/artist of the time. In my down time I have been researching the journey my father took once he arrived to the United States in 1980. The more I find, the more proud, and impressed I am by my father’s journey and his accomplishments.
I work for Charles River Laboratories (CRL) in a dual role in their Insourcing Solutions division. Last year, CRL started a sabbatical program where they select 100 employees out of 10,000 to complete a personal or professional project each year. This year I was chosen among the 1%. In the next 4 weeks, I will be photographing and cataloging my father’s artwork. I will also be meeting with individuals that he has influenced throughout his lifetime and who have influenced him. My journey starts in Central America in his hometown of Panama/Costa Rica and where it will end….who knows? I have a month filled of exciting assignments to complete and the adventure has already begun. I started my journey in Costa Rica where I was fortunate enough to visit one of my father’s first murals. I rode 2 ½ hours one way to the mountain top in the province of Cartago. The journey was an adventure in itself, as we drove through, we experienced at least 4 major climate changes. It went from hot, to rainy, to foggy, to freezing cold temperatures in the 40’s, back to foggy, rainy, and then sunny. When I finally arrived to the small beautiful town the weather was a perfect sunny 75 degrees. I was able to meet with Pastor Juan Paulo Quivos who gave me a history of the church and plans to add additional artwork to the interior of the church. If that was not enough, during my trip, I was fortunate enough to find personal collections and learn more about how they were acquired throughout the country. My trip ended with me meeting several of my father’s family members for the first time including my father’s favorite aunt and two sisters that live in a small town on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica. My trip was rich in family history and amazing stories regarding my father’s love of painting. What has started as a relatively straightforward project has already transformed into a massive undertaking. The more I search, the more wonderful things I find regarding my father and his contributions to the communities that he served. I am anxious to share my findings with the world as I continue to learn more about my father’s many accomplishments. If you have a private art piece or have worked with my father in the past I would love to hear from you. You can email me at foureyespublishingllc@gmail.com or call 305-697-6770. To stay current with me and my projects, please visit my website at www.tashathomas.org and follow me on Instagram at @dr.tasha.thomas. |
Author Dr. Tasha ThomasI am excited to share my journey of finding, cataloging, and archiving my father's (Oscar Thomas Sr.) artwork for generations to come. Archives
May 2022
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