Mildred Thompson

Mildred Thompson sought visible forms for phenomena that escape the naked eye. Originally from Jacksonville, the American artist studied at Howard University and subsequently in Hamburg. She worked for many years in Germany and also spent time in Paris before settling in Atlanta. As a painter, printmaker, sculptor and teacher, she developed an abstract practice sustained by broad intellectual curiosity.

In the Magnetic Fields series, lines, arcs and vivid colours suggest forces in motion. Her reading in physics and cosmology meets a personal investigation of perception and energy. Wood assemblages and graphic works extend this vocabulary. Thompson died in 2003. Her work resists limiting artistic experience to expected subjects, using colour as an instrument of sensory exploration that transforms scientific interests into independent visual relationships.