Hi Everyone,
I am busy painting many new paintings for my upcoming Lionel Train Memories art show which will be open the entire month of December at Coco Vivo Gallery, 25 Broad Street, Charleston SC 29455. The opening is Dec 5th 5-8 pm. If you are in town please stop by. We put up a small layout in the window which gets so much attention from everyone that passes by! Just like the old days!!! One of the main paintings features the BEST FRIEND OF CHARLESTON TRAIN which was created as a Lionel train some years back. See press release below for some history on this wonderful little train! I am attaching the painting as well.
If you can't stop by, you can see many of the paintings on my website www.angelatrottathomas.com I just had my site redesigned and it now has a shopping cart so it is much more user friendly.
PRESS RELEASE FROM COCO VIVO GALLERY
On December 5, 5-8 PM, COCO VIVO Art for Living will host an artist reception and artwork sale featuring the new Vintage Holiday Lionel Collection by nationally known artist Angela Trotta Thomas, premier toy train artist in America. Experience nostalgic holiday moments during this festive French Quarter Artwalk show at COCO VIVO as the Angela Trotta Thomas Lionel Train travels through a Christmas village window display. Tim Church III will entertain our guests with a live musical performance of Christmas songs…an evening to remember!
Best Friend of Charleston, 16x20 Oil, one of the highlights of our show, depicts a vital part of Charleston history. The original Best Friend of Charleston train, built in the early 1800’s, was a huge and necessary bolt to Charleston’s economy. The engine has now been restored and is on display on John Street in Charleston.
Mary Lehr, then President of the Charleston Chapter National Railway Historical Society, worked with the famed Lionel Toy Train Company to create a beautiful model of this very unique and colorful Best Friend of Charleston train. Angela Trotta Thomas is the only artist licensed by the Lionel Train Company, an honor she has held for 24 years, and lives in Charleston; it seemed only fitting that Angela feature this beautiful little toy train in her latest painting, Best Friend of Charleston.
Ms. Thomas states, “In my latest release, I feature the Best Friend of Charleston model train emerging from the Engine House on Ann Street with the Charleston Harbor in the background. Since this historic building no longer houses the Best Friend Train, I wanted pay homage to the Engine House of Charleston, a city on a beautiful harbor.”
The cornerstone of Angela’s art is her ability to bring emotion into her work. Her paintings allow the viewer to experience the warmth of her subject by evoking fond memories, creating a bond between art and the viewer. Angela believes a successful painting must evoke emotion. This is where she derives her greatest satisfaction. To that end, she chose to depict a child of the 1800’s playing with the Best Friend of Charleston model train. Angela’s painting captures the joy of childhood mixed with the remembrance of “what was and still is” as well as the charm of Charleston.
Angela Trotta Thomas’s artwork has been featured on covers of numerous national magazines and official Lionel catalogs. It has also been exhibited in the Smithsonian and Everhart museums. Her paintings have earned her the title of “The Train Lady”. Lionel has also created a beautiful Christmas Lionel train engine in her honor as well as numerous Christmas boxcars and accessories. Many of her paintings hang in both private and corporate collections including Richard and Linda Kughn, former owner of Lionel LLC; Neil Young; Otis Chandler, owner of the LA Times; MBNA Bank; Quest Health Care; Chrysler; and Arrow Fastener Corporation.
