Tom Pfannerstill

New York Coffee Cup

2025

Thomas Pfannerstill has worked as a full-time studio artist since 1986, following his education at Western Kentucky University (BFA 1975). He currently resides and works in Louisville Kentucky, where he is focused on the intensive carving and painting that produce his renowned, trompe l’oeil sculptures of everyday objects. His process calls for extremely close observation, both on the part of the artist and that of the viewer. These copies of humble objects require a recreation of not only the form and graphic packaging, but also of the marks, rips, dirt, and imperfections accrued by the original object over time. He says, “Only when I put [the original and the copy] side by side and begin having difficulty discerning which is which do I feel satisfied the piece is finished.” The work thoughtfully probes consumerism within a society that demands mass production and uniformity, while at the same time, on some level, craving and watching for the distinction–the particular story–that makes something unique.