September 2021
Studio Visits W/ Silver Eye
Raymond Thompson Jr.
Studio Visits w/ Silver Eye is a series of conversational, virtual studio and exhibition visits with artists from our community and beyond. In this episode we spoke with Raymond Thompson Jr. about how he transitioned from photojournalism to weaving abstract historical narratives about the places he and his family are from. Studio Visits w/ Silver Eye is hosted by Executive Director, David Oresick.
Listen as a podcast on Apple Podcasts or Spotify!
Video editing by Matthew Pevear
Participating Artist
Raymond Thompson Jr. is an interdisciplinary artist, educator, and visual journalist based in Austin, TX. He is an Assistant Professor at the University of Texas at Austin. His academic journey includes an MFA in Photography from West Virginia University, an MA in Journalism from the University of Texas at Austin, and a degree in American Studies from the University of Mary Washington. Raymond explores how race, memory, representation, and place combine to shape the Black environmental imagination of the North American landscape. He won the 1619 Aftermath Grant (2023) and the 2021 Lenscratch Student Prize (2021). Raymond has been exhibited in numerous exhibitions, including the Fotofest Biennial - Ten by Ten: Ten Portfolios from the Meeting Place 2022-23 (2024). His work is held in the permanent collection of the Museum of Contemporary Photography, the Virginia Museum of Fine Art, and the Ogden Museum of Southern Art. Raymond is the author of Appalachian Ghost, published in 2024 by the University Press of Kentucky.