© Estate of the artist. Photograph and digital image © Delaware Art Museum. Not for reproductio…

Abram Tromka

Polish painter and etcher, 1896–1954

BiographyAbram Tromka was born May 1, 1896, in Poland. At the age of seven he immigrated with his family to the United States, settling in New York City. It was on the boat coming to New York where Tromka first became interested in art. Fascinated by a woman who was painting, he decided that he wanted to become an artist. Upon arrival at immigration headquarters, Tromka’s family adopted the surname “Phillips,” which he kept until 1930. Hence the artist’s early works bear the signature — ‘A. Phillips.’

Having a rough childhood, Tromka left home at 15 and spent the remainder of his teenage years living at the Henry Street Settlement. Lilian D. Wald, founder and head of the settlement, was so impressed by young Tromka’s talent for art that the settlement began offering art classes. In 1915, she used his drawings and etchings to illustrate her book, The House on Henry Street. That same year, Tromka began his schooling at the Ferrer School, where he studied under Ashcan artists Robert Henri (1865-1929) and George Bellows (1882-1925) until 1922. Tromka was very impressed by the Ashcan style, and Henri and Bellows especially influenced his artistic development.

In 1927, Tromka befriended the curator of painting at the Brooklyn Museum, Herbert Tschudy who organized Tromka’s first solo exhibition at the museum in 1932. As a resident of Brooklyn, Tromka contributed to the New York arts throughout the rest of his artistic career, participating in many shows and exhibitions in galleries and museums, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Tromka’s work was most frequently shown at the ACA Gallery in New York City beginning in 1933. Following the success of his first Brooklyn Museum exhibition, his art was also shown throughout the country, and a traveling exhibition of serigraphs including his work was shown in the U.S.S.R.

As a member of the New York branch of the American Artists Congress, Tromka participated in membership exhibitions and served on the exhibition committee. He also participated in the Federal Art Project throughout its entire duration from 1935 to 1943. Rather than joining out of necessity, Tromka was invited to the WPA program to offer prestige to the Depression-era program. The industrial subject matter and style of his art during the Art Project continued to resonate with that of Henri’s and Bellows’ realist approach.

In 1946 and again in 1952, the Brooklyn Museum awarded Tromka for his merits in the visual arts. He continued working as an artist in New York City until his death in June of 1954.

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