Trinidadian-Canadian artist Denyse Thomasos (1964–2012) was an internationally-recognized painter known for her colourful, architectural works that challenge the history of slavery and racism. Thomasos’s abstract forms carried powerful meanings: “Using large-scale painting, I developed a visual language of line to express the black experience from slavery to present day. I use abstraction to convey the intractable complexity of slavery and the psychological ramifications that racism, displacement, isolation and confinement continue to exert on people of color.” The recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship and a Canada Council Millennium Grant, Thomasos taught at Rutgers University.