Thomas Windsor - From Heart to Brush

Doom scrolling on YouTube may usually be a waste of time but occasionally you stumble across a real, hidden gem. That happened to me a few weeks ago. I like watching YouTube videos about art and art history (and, truthfully, many other subjects). You know the way YouTube works - it takes your watch history and tries to predict other videos you might want to watch. YouTube wants you to keep watching videos - forever would be ideal for them. This was the case with my guest in this episode of The Artful Painter.YouTube suggested to me a video on a channel called Painting Therapy, by artist and cinematographer Thomas Windsor. That expression - painting therapy - hooked me. I clicked, and I watched, and I watched, and I watched. YouTube’s algorithm was happy, and I was enthralled by what I saw and heard as Thomas painted on camera. The binge has started and I kept watching and listening to Thomas. At one point, I left one of his videos playing as I worked on a large painting. I could not see what he was doing so I just listened to him talking in the background. I usually find it highly distracting to paint with words sounding off in the background. The words through me off so it’s something I rarely ever do. I can’t listen to podcasts while I paint, nor can I listen to songs with vocals. It’s weird I know - but that’s just me. But Thomas was an exception to the rule.After this experience, I knew I had to have Thomas Windsor on the podcast. I reached out to him and he graciously accepted. So, I’m happy to share with you our conversation in this edition of The Artful Painter. Wow! I learned a lot about Thomas in this conversation. Turns out, his day job is running a film production company. He is a cinematographer and produces commercial videos. Painting is a side-calling, but a very important one to Thomas.To whet your appetite, here are a few things we talk about:Thomas Windsor’s background in filmmaking and commercial productionGrowing up in a strict household with limited media exposureCommitting to “a painting a week”Why Thomas intentionally avoided formal art trainingPainting as self-education and self-discoveryThe connection between filmmaking and paintingWhy painting feels more personal and vulnerable than filmmakingThe difference between technical perfection and emotional authenticityThe influence of Vincent van Gogh on Thomas’s thinking about art and emotionCreativity as a direct emotional expression rather than a technical exerciseThe dangers of overthinking and perfectionism“Painting Therapy” and art as emotional regulationDepression, sensitivity, and the search for meaningObserving everyday beauty and “being an artist” in daily lifeThe importance of presence, attention, and wonderThat’s a lot to process in about an hour, but, shazaam! What an hour it was for me to converse with Thomas. I hope you enjoy this episode.LinksThomas WindsorWebsite: https://thomaswindsorstudio.com/Film Production Website: https://epiclightmedia.com/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thomaswindsorstudio/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thomaswindsorstudio/Painting Therapy channel on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Thomas_WindsorEpic Light Media channel on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/EpicLightMediaOther LinksVincent Laforet Website: https://www.vincentlaforet.com/Vincent Laforet on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaGfb_6taciyILmlJFxecvAPhilip Bloom Website: https://philipbloom.net/Philip Bloom on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/philipbloomRodney Charters: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0153552/About