Editor’s note: The following article was originally written by former Ledger Times staff writer Angie Hatton for a special publication. It is published here for the first time.

Joy Thomas has painted portraits of prominent families, politicians, military leaders and business moguls. She is also an author, teacher and host of multiple art instruction films. However, Thomas was not always so established. The mother of three had to prove her tenacity before the high art world would acknowledge her talent.

Thomas, and her husband, Fred, live near Murray on the outskirts of Lynn Grove. Their home is scattered throughout with paintings Thomas has done over the years. They are mostly portraits, but Thomas also does “still life,” studies and “Plein Aire” work, which are landscapes done outside in the environment.

Thomas says she was drawn to realistic work early in her career. She majored in art in the late 1970s, but found herself dissatisfied with the avant garde art style being taught at the time. Students were encouraged to “make a statement,” rather than focus on principals of form and composition, and classes felt more like group therapy sessions, Thomas said.  

“My interest was always drawing, because that’s the basis of everything,” Thomas said.

In her late 20s, Thomas sought out master classes from artists who were experts in the same kind of realist and narrative work that she was interested in.

“Fred stayed home with the kids and I would go away, sometimes for the summer. I mean, I went to Lyme Academy of Fine Arts in Connecticut and stayed there three or four months,” said Thomas.

While she was taking classes, Thomas was also networking, and receiving some of her first significant commission work.

In her early career, Thomas said she had trouble getting what she felt was a fair price for the quality of work she was producing. She said that a lot of portrait artists are represented by an agency and when she had opportunities in her early career to sign with agencies, the agencies did not want to bill her as one of their top artists. Thomas said at the time she knew she was getting good enough to get top billing.

The Thomases launched their own advertising campaign about Joy’s work. They mortgaged their house and farm to take out ads in high end and designer magazines such as “Southern Accents.”  She said the gamble paid off.

“That’s when I started getting commissions from the Forbes family, and the Robert Wood Johnson family and the Ross Perot (family),” said Thomas.

An aspect of Thomas’ work that has set her apart is her ability to not only capture form, but also capture the psychology and mood of her subjects. Thomas uses the example of Robert Wood Johnson IV, owner of the New York Jets football team. Johnson commissioned her to paint his portrait because it was a tradition in his family for the men to have their portraits painted. Johnson is a very casual man, who never wears a tie and always wears tennis shoes, Thomas said.

“He was kind of rebellious in terms of how he would go about (having his portrait painted). He said, ‘Well, I don’t dress well,’ and I just looked at the situation, and he had on a white button down, and I said OK, let’s just go with what you’re wearing this very second, rumpled, and ... it turned out to be a really great painting,” said Thomas.  

In the painting, Johnson’s is sitting, somewhat slouched, in an antique orange armchair. One arm is draped over the arm of the chair, and the other rests on his crossed legs. He seems comfortable, but commanding.

Thomas has received numerous awards for her work, including first place from the American Society of Portrait Artists’ Portrait Competition and first place in the Best Paintings of 2000 by Artists Magazine. Some of her major commission work has included portraits of the Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard Admiral Thomas Collins and Secretary of the Navy Richard Danzig. The latter painting hangs in the Pentagon. Most recently, Thomas was commissioned by the Kentucky Democratic Party to paint Gov. Steve Beshear for the portrait that will hang in the Toyota Kentucky Hall of Governors at the Thomas D. Clark Center for Kentucky History.

Thomas says she loves that some of her work has become a part of the historical record.

“I can’t imagine not being an artist. I’ve had a good run at it, and I hope I can continue to do it,” said Thomas.