Scrapbooks were lent for microfilming in 1970 by Reuben Tam and were subsequently donated in 2009 along with additional papers by Geraldine King Tam, Reuben Tam's widow. 34 additional sketchbooks were donated in 2020 by the Geraldine King Tam Trust, via Cindy King, trustee and niece of Geraldine King Tam.
Reuben Tam papers, 1958-1966, are also located at Syracuse University.
The bulk of the collection was digitized in 2017 and is available on the Archives of American Art's website. Materials which have not been digitized include blank pages, blank versos of photographs, and duplicates. In some cases, exhibition catalogs and other publications have had their covers, title pages, and relevant pages scanned.
The collection was processed and described in a finding aid by Erin Kinhart in 2011. The collection was fully processed and prepared for digitization by Rihoko Ueno in 2017. The digitization of the Reuben Tam papers received Federal support from the Asian Pacific American Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center.
Reuben Tam papers, 1931-2006. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
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Reuben Tam (1916-1991) was a landscape painter and educator in New York, Maine, and Hawaii. Tam was born in Kapaa, Hawaii, in 1916. He received a degree in education in 1937 from the University of Hawaii and was briefly a public school teacher before attending graduate courses at the California School of Fine Arts. In 1941 he moved to New York and took courses in art history and philosophy at the New School for Social Research and Columbia University. Tam became affiliated with the Downtown Gallery in 1945 and was a prolific exhibitor in national and regional shows, winning critical praise as an abstract landscape painter. In 1948 he was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship and first exhibited in the National Academy's annual exhibition in 1947.
Tam was an instructor at the Brooklyn Museum of Art School from 1946 to 1974. While there he taught advanced studies in painting and was chairman of the graduate painting department. He also served as a visiting professor at Oregon State University, Haystack, and Queens College, CUNY.
Beginning in 1948, Tam and his wife, Geraldine, spent summers at their home and studio on Monhegan Island, Maine. Tam's work was deeply influenced by coastal landscapes both in Maine and in his native Hawaii. In 1981 he and his wife moved back to Kapaa, Hawaii, where he continued to paint and exhibit his new works until his death in 1991.
The papers of landscape painter and educator Reuben Tam measure 9.2 linear feet and date from 1931 to 2006. The papers document his career as a painter in New York, Maine, and Hawaii through biographical material; correspondence with family, friends, art organizations, schools, and galleries; diaries, poetry, and other writings; exhibition catalogs, news clippings, other printed material; photographs; artwork, including seventeen sketchbooks; and eight scrapbooks. There is a 1.1 linear foot unprocessed addition to the collection donated in 2020 that includes 34 sketchbooks, circa 1940-1974, by Tam from his time in New York, Hawaii, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Oregon, Alaska and Canada.
Biographical material includes school documents, records of his tenure as an instructor at the Brooklyn Museum of Art School, artwork consignment and sales records, and slides and accompanying audio cassette recording of the "Reuben Tam Show" about his work as an artist on Monhegan Island, Maine.
Correspondence is with family, fellow artists, including William Kienbusch and Hyde Solomon, as well as art organizations, schools, and museums, such as Brooklyn Museum of Art School, Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, Maine Coast Artists group, and the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture. Also found is correspondence with the three galleries which represented his work: Downtown Gallery, Alan Gallery, and Coe Kerr Gallery.
The collection includes five bound diaries as well as diary entries written by Reuben Tam on loose sheets of paper, primarily documenting the 1940s. Other writings include drafts of poetry, one notebook, miscellaneous notes, and essays by others.
Printed material consists of school publications, exhibition catalogs and announcements for solo and group shows, brochures, flyers, magazines, bulletins, and news clippings. Eight scrapbooks found in this collection also include newspaper clippings, exhibition announcements and catalogs, as well as event invitations, membership cards, and letters, documenting 40 years of Reuben Tam's career.
Photographs are of Reuben Tam, Tam with friends and family, and artwork. One photograph album contains photographs from Tam's visits to Maine from 1946 to 1948, and includes photographs of fellow artists Hyde Solomon, Carl Nesjar, Dorothy Andrews, and William Kienbusch. Artwork in the collection includes prints, drawings, and watercolors as well as seventeen large sketchbooks documenting the coastal landscape of Monhegan Island, Maine.
The collection is arranged as 9 series:
This series contains biographical summaries and resumes documenting Reuben Tam's career, as well as his school records, diplomas, and teaching records, including extensive records of his tenure at the Brooklyn Museum of Art School. Also found are records of artwork sales and loans, various lists of artwork, and the consignment and purchase records for the galleries which represented Tam. Also of note is a slide show and accompanying audio cassette recording of the "Reuben Tam Show" about his work as an artist on Monhegan Island, Maine.
Folders are arranged alphabetically.
The bulk of this series has been digitized, except for blank pages and duplicates. The sound recording of the "Reuben Tam Show" has been digitized for research access.
Appraisal Records
"Artists of Hawaii" Television Program Documents
Artwork Freight Records
Artwork Sales and Loans
Bills and Receipts (1 of 2)
Bills and Receipts (2 of 2)
Biographical Information and Resumes
Calendar Pages
Consignments and Purchases, Alan Gallery
Consignments and Purchases, Alan Gallery
Consignments and Purchases, Coe Kerr Gallery
Consignments and Purchases, Downtown Gallery
Consignments and Purchases, Downtown Gallery
Diplomas
Identification Card
Lists of Artwork
Memorial Program
National Endowment for the Arts Grant Application
"Reuben Tam Show" Slide Show
School Records
Teaching Records
Teaching Records, Brooklyn Museum of Art School (1 of 2)
Teaching Records, Brooklyn Museum of Art School (2 of 2)
Travel Documents
This series contains Tam's correspondence with his wife Geraldine, family, friends, colleagues, art associations, schools, museums, and galleries. Also found are copies of Tam's outgoing correspondence and letters sent to Geraldine Tam after Reuben's death. Researchers should note that additional letters of significance are located within the scrapbooks in Series 8.
Of note is correspondence with friends and fellow artists Alan Gussow, William Kienbusch, Frances Kornbluth, Carl Nesjar, Ben Norris, and Hyde Solomon, as well as art organizations, schools, and museums, such as Artists Equity Association, Brooklyn Museum of Art School, Honolulu Academy of Arts, Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, Maine Coast Artists group, the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, Museum of Modern Art, and the Whitney Museum of American Art. Also found is correspondence with the three galleries which represented his work: Downtown Gallery, Alan Gallery, and Coe Kerr Gallery.
Family and outgoing correspondence is arranged chronologically followed by general correspondence which is arranged alphabetically.
The bulk of this series has been digitized, except for duplicates.
Correspondence between Reuben and Geraldine Tam
Correspondence between Reuben and Geraldine Tam
Family Correspondence
Family Correspondence
Family Correspondence
Family Correspondence
Family Correspondence
Family Correspondence
Family Correspondence
Family Correspondence
Family Correspondence
Family Correspondence
Family Correspondence (Undated)
Letters to Geraldine Tam from Others (Undated)
Letters to Geraldine Tam from Others
Letters to Geraldine Tam from Others
Outgoing Letters by Reuben Tam
Outgoing Letters by Reuben Tam
Outgoing Letters by Reuben Tam
Outgoing Letters by Reuben Tam
Outgoing Letters by Reuben Tam
Outgoing Letters by Reuben Tam
Outgoing Letters by Reuben Tam
Outgoing Letters by Reuben Tam
Outgoing Letters by Reuben Tam
Outgoing Letters by Reuben Tam
Outgoing Letters by Reuben Tam
Alan Gallery
Alan Gallery
Allentown Art Museum
Artists Equity Association
Art League of Hilton Head
A, Miscellaneous: Ad-An
A, Miscellaneous: Ar-Av
Barrett, Tom and Leni Mancuso
Betts, Edward
Boothbay Region Art Foundation
Brooklyn Museum Art School
Brooklyn Museum Art School
B, Miscellaneous: Ba-Bi
B, Miscellaneous: Bl-By
Clough, Gari and Elena
Coe Kerr Gallery
Coe Kerr Gallery
Coe Kerr Gallery
Colby College Art Museum
Columbia University
C, Miscellaneous: Ca-Ce
C, Miscellaneous: Ch-Cl
C, Miscellaneous: Coa-Con
C, Miscellaneous: Cor-Cu
Downtown Gallery
D, Miscellaneous: Da-Di
D, Miscellaneous: Do-Dr
E, Miscellaneous
Ford Foundation
F, Miscellaneous: Fa-Fe
F, Miscellaneous: Fi-Fo
F, Miscellaneous: Fr-Fu
Goldsmith, Lawrence
Gussow, Alan
Gussow, Alan
G, Miscellaneous: Ga-Gi
G, Miscellaneous: Go-Gu
Haystack
Honolulu Academy of Arts
Honolulu Print Makers
H, Miscellaneous: Ha
H, Miscellaneous: He-Hu
Institute of International Education
International House
I, Miscellaneous
Jahn, Elena
Joe De Mers Gallery
John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
J, Miscellaneous
Kienbusch, William
Kienbusch, William
Kirchner, Leon
Kline, Amy Sue and Thomas McColl
Kornbluth, Frances
Kurka, Don
K, Miscellaneous: Ka-Ko
K, Miscellaneous: Kr-Ku
Lamont Gallery
Lyman House Memorial Museum
L, Miscellaneous: La-Le
L, Miscellaneous: Li-Ly
Maine Art Gallery
Maine Coast Artists
Maine Coast Artists
Maine Coast Artists
Manoa
Miller, Donald
Museum of Modern Art
M, Miscellaneous: Mac-Mai
M, Miscellaneous: Mal-May
M, Miscellaneous: Mc-Mo
National Academy of Design
Nesjar, Carl
Norris, Ben
N, Miscellaneous: N.-Na
N, Miscellaneous: Ne-No
Oregon State University
O, Miscellaneous
Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts
Porter, Cecil
Portland Museum of Art
P, Miscellaneous: Pa-Pe
P, Miscellaneous: Ph-Pu
Q, Miscellaneous
Rockwell, Fritz
R, Miscellaneous: Ra-Ri
R, Miscellaneous: Ro-Ru
Samenfeld, Mark
Schaffner, John
Shoemaker, Peter
Silk Screen Group
Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture
Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture
Solomon, Hyde
State Foundation on Culture and the Arts (Hawaii)
Syracuse University
S, Miscellaneous: Sa-Sc
S, Miscellaneous: Se-Sm
S, Miscellaneous: So-Su
Twining, Libbie Cooper
T, Miscellaneous
University of Colorado
University of Delaware
University of Hawaii
University of Illinois, Urbana
U, Miscellaneous
V, Miscellaneous
Whitney Museum of American Art
Winters, Denny
W, Miscellaneous: Wa-We
W, Miscellaneous: Wh-Wo
Y-Z, Miscellaneous
Unidentified Correspondence
Unidentified Correspondence
This series contains five bound diaries as well as diary entries written by Reuben Tam on loose sheets of paper. Most of the diaries document Tam's activities during the 1940s, including his early visits to Maine. Diaries also include a few sketches and notes.
Diaries are arranged in chronological order.
The bulk of this series has been digitized, except for blank pages.
Diary
Diary (Loose Pages)
Diary (Loose Pages)
Diary (Loose Pages)
Diary
Diary
Diary (Loose Pages)
Diary (Loose Pages)
Diary
Diary
Diary (Loose Pages)
This series contains drafts of poetry by Reuben Tam, one notebook containing notes on artwork and painting technique, and miscellaneous writings and notes by Tam, including thoughts on Montauk, New York, and Monhegan Island, Maine. Also found are an essay about Tam, "Reuben Tam, Metaphysical Painter" by Martin James, and an article for Kauai Magazine by Pat I. Griffin.
The material in this series has been arranged alphabetically by type of writing, such as essays, notes, and poems.
The bulk of this series has been digitized, except for blank pages and duplicates.
Autobiographical Essay by Reuben Tam
Miscellaneous Writings and Notes
Miscellaneous Writings and Notes
Notebook
Poetry by Reuben Tam
Poem by Jerry Friese, "Signature"
Writings about Reuben Tam
Printed material consists of a book of poetry by Reuben Tam titled
The material in this series has been arranged by document type (exhibition announcements and catalogs, report, magazines, clippings, etc.), then arranged chronologically within those groupings.
The bulk of this series has been digitized, except for duplicates. Most of the exhibition catalogs and other publications have had their covers, title pages, and relevant pages scanned.
Brooklyn Museum Art School Publications
Exhibition Announcements and Catalogs (Undated)
Exhibition Announcements and Catalogs
Exhibition Announcements and Catalogs
Exhibition Announcements and Catalogs
Exhibition Announcements and Catalogs
Exhibition Announcements and Catalogs
Exhibition Announcements and Catalogs
Exhibition Announcements and Catalogs
Exhibition Announcements and Catalogs
Exhibition Announcements and Catalogs
Exhibition Announcements and Catalogs
Exhibition Announcements and Catalogs
Foundation Reports
Gallery Publications
Magazines and Bulletins
Magazines and Bulletins
Oversized magazine housed in Box 9.
Magazines and Bulletins
Magazines and Bulletins
News Clippings (Undated)
News Clippings
News Clippings
News Clippings
News Clippings
News Clippings
News Clippings
Miscellaneous Printed Material (1 of 2)
Miscellaneous Printed Material (2 of 2)
Miscellaneous Printed Material
This series consists of photographs of Reuben Tam, Tam with friends and family, photographs and slides of his artwork, and four photograph albums. Included are photographs of Tam in his studio, sketching on Monhegan Island, and portraits taken by his nephew, William Ing. One photograph album contains photographs from Tam's visits to Maine from 1946 to 1948 and includes photographs of fellow artists Hyde Solomon, Carl Nesjar, Dorothy Andrews, and William Kienbusch.
The material in this series is loosely arranged by subject. Photographs of Reuben Tam are at the beginning of the series.
The bulk of this series has been scanned, except for duplicates and blank versos of photographs.
Small Snapshots of Reuben Tam
Photographs of Reuben Tam
Photographs of Reuben Tam
Oversized photographs housed in Box 9.
Photographs of Reuben Tam
Oversized photograph housed in Box 9.
Photographs of Reuben Tam
Photographs of Reuben Tam by William Ing
Photographs of Reuben Tam on Monhegan Island
Photographs of Reuben Tam and Others
Photograph of Monhegan Cottage
Oversized photograph housed in Box 9.
Photographs for Still Life Lecture
Photograph Album, Personal (1 of 2)
Photograph Album, Personal (2 of 2)
Photograph Album of Artwork 1 (1 of 2)
Photograph Album of Artwork 1 (2 of 2)
Photograph Album of Artwork 2 (1 of 2)
Photograph Album of Artwork 2 (2 of 2)
Photograph Album of Artwork 3
Photographs of Artwork
Photographs of Artwork
Photographs of Artwork
Photographs of Artwork
Photographs of Artwork
Negatives and Slides
Artwork includes Reuben Tam's drawings, watercolors, prints, and sketchbooks, as well as two drawings by others. Some of these works are from the period that Tam was a student at the University of Hawaii. Seventeen large sketchbooks contain Tam's pencil, ink, and watercolor sketches of the rocky landscape on Monhegan Island, Maine. One pastel portrait, possibly of Tam, is by an unidentified artist, and one sketch by Geraldine Tam is titled "Reuben Tam Typing."
The material in this series has been loosely grouped by medium and format (drawings, portraits, prints, sketchbooks, etc.). The sketchbooks have been arranged chronologically.
The bulk of this series has been digitized, except for blank pages.
Drawings and Watercolors
Oversized items housed in Box 9.
Pastel Portrait
Oversized item housed in OV 11.
Prints
Sketch by Geraldine Tam
Sketchbook 1
Sketchbook 2
Sketchbook 3
Sketchbook
Sketchbook 1
Sketchbook 2
Sketchbook 1
Sketchbook 2
Sketchbook 1
Sketchbook 2
Sketchbook 3
Sketchbook
Sketchbook
Sketchbook 1
Sketchbook 2
Sketchbook (Undated) 1
Sketchbook (Undated) 2
This series contains eight scrapbooks, documenting 40 years of Reuben Tam's career as an artist in New York and Maine. Included in the scrapbooks are newspaper clippings, exhibition announcements and catalogs, event invitations, membership cards, and letters from Downtown Gallery, Museum of Modern Art, Carnegie Institute, Brooklyn Museum, and other galleries and art organizations. Three loose scrapbook pages appear to be from scrapbooks not found in this collection.
Scrapbook pages have been removed from fragile binders and placed into archival folders, maintaining the original page order. Scrapbooks were numbered by Reuben Tam and are in chronological order.
The bulk of the series has been digitized, except for a few pages of duplicates.
Loose Scrapbook Pages
Scrapbook 1 (1 of 2)
Scrapbook 1 (2 of 2)
Scrapbook 2 (1 of 2)
Scrapbook 2 (2 of 2)
Scrapbook 3 (1 of 2)
Scrapbook 3 (2 of 2)
Scrapbook 4 (1 of 2)
Scrapbook 4 (2 of 2)
Scrapbook 5 (1 of 3)
Scrapbook 5 (2 of 3)
Scrapbook 5 (3 of 3)
Scrapbook 6 (1 of 3)
Scrapbook 6 (2 of 3)
Scrapbook 6 (3 of 3)
Scrapbook 7 (1 of 2)
Scrapbook 7 (2 of 2)
Scrapbook 8 (1 of 2)
Scrapbook 8 (2 of 2)
The unprocessed 1.1 linear foot addition includes 34 sketchbooks, circa 1940-1974, by Tam from his time in New York, Hawaii, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Oregon, Alaska and Canada.