“Nature gives every shape, colour, and pattern we could dream of,
and provides us with everything we need to live.
We should be thanking nature on a daily basis,
apologising for our treatment of it,
and congratulating it for its absolute magnitude.”
Thomas James Butler

Thank You, Sorry, and Congratulations is an evolution of Butler’s journey into Floriography and “The language of flowers”; a style that debuted in the group exhibition Infinite Nature in Oslo, 2023. Flower paintings from Butler’s residency at Minnow and Wolf Flower Farm in East Hampshire will be on view alongside prints, sculpture, film, and an exciting collaborative series with Candie Payne.

Born in North Yorkshire in 1982, Thomas James Butler works with a range of materials and mediums, predominantly painting, collage and more recently sculpture. He draws inspiration from a variety of cultural reference points and innovators; 20th century painters Robert Rauchenburg and Hans Hoffman are equally as relevant to Butler’s practice as filmmakers and writers Stanley Kubrick and Charles Bukowski.

Butler’s early work focused on his collage approach, a dynamic and engaging style that focused on 20th century iconography. The blankness of the canvas as important as the materials themselves, imaginative compositions create a direct narrative that draws the viewer into the work. His evolution into abstract painting has been a natural development, a more personal expression of colour and form painted instinctively. Vibrant hues that are often otherwise incompatible find harmony within his bold compositions, evoking a sense of beauty and joy from what could easily fall into chaos.

Butler featured in Infinite Nature; a group exhibition first presented in Oslo, Norway in Summer 2023. His paintings investigated themes of nature through Floriography, presenting his unique take on ‘the language of flowers’. The collection also included his first exploration into sculpture, created with the artist Christopher Kelly.

In August 2025, RedHouse presented Petal Paintings, a collection of recent works on canvas showcasing a vivid meditation on nature, magnifying the subtle and sampling the vast. The exhibition was complimented by a live performance from Present Nature, for the launch of their newest single ‘Man Knows’ in July 2025.

Butler lives and works in Yorkshire, sharing a studio with his partner, artist Candie Payne.

For further information on the exhibition, please visit the Red House Gallery website