Hello, I'm Tknudson.

Tommy Knudson was born and raised in San Diego, where a childhood spent in search of excitement and quiet adventures with close friends laid the foundation for a fertile creative imagination. Even as a kindergartener, Knudson’s yearning to create was evident: with limited resources at home—no paper, colored pencils, or glue—he discovered art as both an escape and a necessity. These early improvisations kindled a lifelong compulsion to make the invisible visible and to transform scarcity into vision. Though art ran in the family—his uncle being a pivotal figure—Knudson is entirely self-taught, his education forged through relentless experimentation and curiosity outside conventional institutions. After school, he found that no substitute could rival the satisfaction of creating art, and it has remained a non-negotiable aspect of his life. As he asserts, “Life is boring without art or creating.” Knudson’s compositions often unfold like scenes glimpsed through fogged childhood glass—unexpected, wondrous, and tinged with longing. This is no accident: he credits the experience of peering into toy stores as a child, mesmerized by what lay just beyond his reach, as a lasting source of fascination and inspiration. Each artwork begins with an idea, coaxed into being by a soundtrack chosen to harmonize with its mood. From there, he meticulously cuts images from old photography books, temporarily tacking them down with glue sticks, a process he likens to sculpting. Once content with the layout, he secures the images more permanently then paints over the collage in oil, layering depth and shimmering color. The final act is a pour of resin, encasing the composition without obscuring its underlying energy. The result is an unmistakable style that dances between figurative surrealism and Pop Narrative, informed by deep influences: the layered worlds of Hieronymus Bosch, the dreamscapes of Salvador Dali, and the haunting precision of Yves Tanguy. Movement, depth, and shadow—combined at times with double images that transform under the viewer’s gaze—characterize his intricate technique, while oil paint brings his narratives alive. Each piece is a unique storytelling vessel, sometimes commissioned for specific audiences, as in the Toy Story tableau for a newborn boy, or the imaginative Native American scenes seasoned with allusions to American cinema.