Tom Collins (b. 1992) is an independent visual artist based in Toronto, Ontario. His artistic practice focuses on painting and drawing — portraiture in particular. His works are held in private collections in North America, Europe and Asia.
Collins’ work explores themes that have inspired artists and philosophers for millennia: beauty, desire, mortality and the Sublime. Yet, the locus of this exploration is decidedly modern: the contemporary aesthetics of popular culture, including social media. Collins distills the iconography of Instagram selfies and Vogue spreads into transcendent expressions of humanity.
In his artistic investigations, Collins draws inspiration from such giants as Andy Warhol, Tom Wesselmann and Barnett Newman, as well as from contemporary masters such as Alex Katz and Robert Longo. Stencil-based street art, such as the kind for which Banksy is known, is another major source of Collins’ stylistic vocabulary.
In addition to being an artist, Collins is also a licensed lawyer (’21) who practices commercial litigation at a large, international firm. He holds a Juris Doctor from the University of Toronto Faculty of Law (’20). During his legal studies, Collins received the Patricia Julia Myhal Scholarship for Excellence in Legal Writing. He has published essays on a variety of legal subjects.
Before studying law, Collins received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Art History, with Great Distinction, from Concordia University (’16). There, he was awarded the R. Bella Rabinovitch Art History Prize for the Most Outstanding Student in Art History, the Association of Alumni of Sir George Williams University Inc. Scholarship in Memory of John W. O’Brien, and the Concordia University Student Research Award.