By Lee Hurley
When Birmingham resident Keith Thomson got the email inviting him to be the featured artist at this year’s Magic City Art Connection (MCAC), his self-deprecation and humor were in full force: “I saw the email and figured it was sent to me by mistake.”
Thomson’s paintings are self-deprecating and funny too and thankfully Birmingham will get to see them in person at MCAC’s 43rd annual celebration April 24‑26 on the grounds of Sloss Furnace National Historic Landmark.
Baseball in Paris, Cartoons in Manhattan
Thomson grew up in Connecticut and at 20, was invited to play semi‑pro baseball for Le PUC, in Paris. “Spring training was in Parma, Italy,” says Thomson. “That was one of the best experiences of my life, a perfect storm of things I love: baseball and travel.” When he returned home a year later, he began drawing editorial cartoons, landing freelance work for the New Haven Register, New York Newsday, and ultimately the New York Times during the 1990s.
Asked how he got into drawing Thomson says, “As my mother tells it, she gave me crayons in the high chair to keep me out of her hair.”
Lights, Camera, Rewrites and Spycraft
Following his cartoonist days, Thomson tried filmmaking. A short film of his was screened at Sundance, which led to screenwriting work for TriStar, Paramount and Disney. “I was in a meeting at Paramount—15 people giving notes on a rewrite—and afterward my agent said, ‘If you write a novel, no one can change anything.’” He had never considered writing a novel, but that night in his hotel room, Thomson signed up for a Stanford continuing‑ed course. His first project became Pirates of Pensacola, which has been affectionately called a “humor adventure novel.”
He’s since published a string of thrillers and spy novels—including the New York Times bestseller Once a Spy, its sequel Twice a Spy, 7 Grams of Lead and more recent titles through Hachette. His nonfiction has appeared in The Wall Street Journal, Garden & Gun, and The Huffington Post. Thomson is currently finishing his latest novel, and when asked if he loves to write, he quotes Dorothy Parker “I don’t like writing; I like having written.”
The Accidental Painter
After nearly a decade coaching Little League baseball for his two sons, Thomson suddenly found himself with free time when they “retired” at age 12. “So I decided to play golf. A friend—who’s a golf fanatic—said, ‘You used to be good at drawing Keith. Why don’t you do that instead?’ I think he just didn’t want me in his club.”
So Thomson picked up oils for the first time. “I’d never done oil painting before,” he says. “But I tried it and loved doing it. I can’t wait to get my writing done every day so I can paint.”
That spontaneity became the hallmark of a second career. Thomson’s self‑taught technique feels modern. His paintings transform everyday settings—a diner, a rooftop, a city street—into humorous observations about life.
About Thomson’s steep learning curve with painting he says, “One year at Magic City Art Connection, I rented a leaking tent. One of the administrators asked, ‘Surely all your paintings are varnished, right?’ I didn’t even know you were supposed to use varnish. Another artist told me, ‘Just put as much on as you can—people love the shiny.’ So I started picking up tips wherever I could.” Thomson credits the MCAC with “opening the doors to his second career.” What began as a hobby slowly turned into a professional vocation. “Magic City gave me a place to learn and grow,” he says. “It’s like going to art camp.”
Escapism
“The truth is, my goal is pretty simple: escapism,” Thomson says. “I draw and paint in representational forms, often pairing the ordinary with the surreal. Elevators, bars, street corners—familiar places where an unexpected presence shifts the entire narrative. Humor and tension coexist in these moments, offering a way to see the world slightly off‑kilter.” Thomson follows up with, “In practice, I’m happy if the painting is an improvement over a blank wall.”
Thomson’s 2019 piece Thanksgiving Day features a gigantic Mighty Mouse parade balloon drifting past an apartment window where a real cat stares in disbelief. That intersection—between the ordinary and extraordinary—captures much of his art. “As much as I love seascapes, I know I don’t have the technical skill to do the kind of seascape I’d want to see,” he admits. “So I try to make it interesting—maybe throw three guys into a bathtub. That gives me license to push the color and composition as much as I want.”
He’s currently completing a “Subway Subordinate” series for his upcoming Playhouse Gallery show in New York, featuring 16 new works inspired by mass trans portation. “I really love subways,” he says. “I’ve probably painted 20 of them.”
“Birmingham, Birmingham, Greatest City in Alabam”
By day, here in Birmingham Thomson writes. “Writing is my job,” he explains. “Painting is still technically a hobby—even though it’s the best part of my day.” He approaches both disciplines with a storyteller’s eye: spies dodging surveillance satellites and ducks eyeing an alien visitor.
Thomson has lived in Birmingham for two decades. Of raising his kids here, Thomson says, “When I was growing up in Connecticut, I went to the Zoo maybe once. My kids went once a week living here.”
Keith concludes, “It’s really just pure fun at this point for me, and I don’t know what else to say. We’re going to France the week before the show, and then my son’s graduation is one week afterwards. It’s just kind of a nuts time, but I wouldn’t miss this for anything.”
Claire Cormany:
In the Moment
Artist Claire Cormany will be showing her paintings at the
Magic City Art Connection as she has for the last 17 years.
Attending Samford in the ‘90s, Cormany majored in
graphic design and minored in painting. She has successfully engaged in both disciplines ever since. Cormany uses
lush colors featuring ethereal interpretations of the familiar. “I’m trying to capture an overall feeling—a moment,”
she says. Keith Thomson adds, “Claire has been one
of my mentors, giving advice along the line. We have one
of her originals in our living room.”
Look for Cormany’s acrylic and oil paintings at the 43rd Magic City Art Connection Sloss Furnaces April 24-26.
For more information, visit clairecormany.com.
