Adam Tamsky’s American art

Contributed by Sharon Butler / One of my favorite galleries in New England has always been Adam Tamsky Fine Art, which specializes in paintings primarily made by under-recognized painters from the 40s and 50s. For many years the gallery was a fixture on Wickendon Street in Providence, RI, but when I was in Stonington, CT, the other day for the Annual Stonington Village Fair, I saw that Adam has opened a new gallery on Water Street. I immediately pulled the car over and ran in to see what was going on.

Two Coats of Paint: Your gallery is a gem. You have a keen eye for under-known abstract painters from the early to mid 20th century. Why are you interested in this particular period of abstraction?

Adam Tamsky: I had been a collector of 19th and early 20thC. Landscapes for almost 20 years beginning in the early eighties. When I first opened my gallery in Providence in 1999 I focused on small landscapes and period frames. Gradually I became interested in work by American painters from the WPA era (roughly 1936-42). The paintings I focused on were landscape and figural works but with a decided �Modernist� bent. Many of the painters from that period continued to change their style as they entered the war years and I simply followed their interest in experimenting with non-objective painting. I also read a lot about the �Irascibles� (Pollock, DeKooning, Rothko, et al) in an attempt to try to understand what they were doing. The 1950�s in New York City has now become my favorite period in American art and has proved a fertile ground for finding engaging works by lesser known artists.

TCOP: How do you find the work you display in the gallery? Is there something specific you look for in a painting?

AT: Most of the paintings I find come from family members of the artists I seek. Some come from auctions, and a few are brought to me by pickers who have come to know my taste. As for what I look for in a painting, I am interested in works by trained professionals. People who can handle color and design deftly regardless of the style they choose. If I had to use one word it would be �quality,” but that would take several pages to explain.

TCOP: Has your focus changed since you opened the gallery in Providence 12 years ago? Do you think shows like “Mad Men” have increased interest in the Modernist paintings you sell?

AT: I don�t know about �Mad Men� in particular, but I have noticed an increase in Modern paintings and prints as well as modern furniture showing up in the popular magazines and current movies. I do expect to change my focus now that I have moved to a smaller gallery in Stonington. I will be showing more furniture, jewelry, and lighting from the fities and sixties. As far as objects from the fifties and sixties, I seem to be drawn to European design. I like the lighting designs that came out of Italy and France in the fifties and furniture and jewlery from Denmark and Sweden in the sixties. Perhaps this is unexpected coming from an art collector/dealer who has focused on American art for the past 30 years. �

TCOP: Well, we all have to follow our instincts–I’m looking forward to seeing what kind of interesting light fixtures you uncover. Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts with Two Coats readers. Good luck in the new location.

AT: Thanks, Sharon. My pleasure. �

So Saturday was an excellent day. I discovered Adam’s new gallery and found a copy of One Art: Elizabeth Bishop’s Selected Letters Edited by Robert Giroux at the Village Fair’s used book table for four bucks.

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Elizabeth Bishop was a poet, but also painted.