Dameron worked as a hospital pharmacist for more than 50 years, and in his spare time he pursued art and music, teaching himself how to paint and play.By Susan Swagler
Tom Dameron is a realist – in his artwork and in his approach to life.
“I believe I was blessed with an art gift, and that gift came from above,” he said. “Nothing I say is meant to be vain, but I feel it’s wrong if I don’t use this gift.”
Anyone who sees his art, especially his impossibly realistic watercolor flowers, would agree he has a gift that needs sharing.
You can see for yourself at his show at the Homewood Public Library. It opens Oct. 1 and will be up the entire month. The 20 or so pieces that will be on display are a collection of colorful watercolors and acrylics as well as precise etchings. The works span 30 years.
You’ll find flowers – sunflowers, hydrangeas, lilies, roses and more – that are so remarkably detailed they look like photographs. There are fields of colorful poppies and gardens that partially grew from Dameron’s imagination. There also will be etchings of beloved local musicians.
This mix of visual art and music is part of his life story.
Dameron worked as a hospital pharmacist for more than 50 years, and in his spare time he pursued art and music, teaching himself how to paint and play. He played trombone in high school and in the U.S. Army Reserve band, but he learned much of what he knows on his own.
Now at the age of 80, his award-winning art can be found at Alabama Treasures, which is the gallery at Tricia’s Treasurers in Homewood, and he plays the tuba in a popular eclectic trio called The Old Fashioned Rhythm Method. He also has played with the Anything Goes Trio and another group called The 1920s Jazz Babies. He enjoys playing New Orleans jazz, bluegrass and tunes from the 1920s.
Artist Supporter
For years, Dameron has been a champion of local artists of all sorts.
He had a gallery of his own in Homewood called Lida Rose Gallery. He currently runs the monthly art shows at The Joy Gallery at Homewood Cumberland Presbyterian Church. He has put on shows for artists ranging from Jill McCool with her abstracts and flowers and abstract flowers to Mara Jambor and her dreamy Birmingham cityscapes to the late Robin Nance Metz, who was known for her gorgeous sun artworks, many of which were featured on CBS Sunday Morning.
“I loved all this,” Dameron said, “because there were so many different people I could interact with, and I learned so many things from them.”
This lifelong passion for art – making it, teaching it, sharing it – means his home is filled with his own art and that of artists he admires. It’s an incredibly varied collection that ranges from Bethanne Hill’s distinctive, layered, energetic, folk-art paintings of rural landscapes with animals and tornados and churches to pieces by digital artist Beth Conklin, whose hauntingly beautiful works are inspired by vintage photographs.
Conklin painted Dameron and his wife, Elaine, who have been married for 58 years, with Dameron’s head off his body and lovingly tucked in Elaine’s arms.
Dameron’s own mediums are many. He works in watercolor, pencil, etching, acrylic, encaustic, screen printing and even stained glass. He replaced most of the doors in his Homewood house, from bedrooms to bathrooms to studio, with ones set with his own stained-glass panels. The stained-glass car he created for his son’s bedroom door is especially intricate.
Nature and people are his preferred subjects. Dameron admires “the natural composition of flowers.” His etchings, especially, marry his love of art and music and the people who make music.
He’s sketched and etched and painted local musical legends such as Bobby Horton, Topper Price and Herb Trotman of Fretted Instruments. He created an acrylic on wood panel painting of the late great Leon Redbone. Dameron said he is “a forever fan of Leon Redbone.”
Other subjects familiar to people in Birmingham include the late sculptor Frank Fleming, in silkscreen and acrylic on canvas, and the very much alive Bernard Tamburello, who owns Vecchia Pizzeria & Mercato and Moss Rock Tacos & Tequila. Dameron’s acrylic on wood panel portrait of Tamburello is on display at Vecchia.
Art = Happiness
The show at the Homewood Public Library is Dameron’s time to shine but, he’s quick to say it isn’t just about him. He said he hopes people leave the library show feeling happy.
“I appreciate kindness in all its forms,” he said. His art is a way for him to show kindness to others.
“Art, to me, is supposed to make people happy,” Dameron said. “And I want people to know that it’s not about money with me. It’s about exploring realistic art and being kind to people and giving them something to look at during these times that are so negative right now. … If I sell something, I’m ecstatic and if I don’t sell anything, I’m ecstatic. My whole career with art is I want to be able to produce things that make people happy. It’s all I care about. I just feel that way. I can’t help it. I’ve always been that way.”
For more information on Tom Dameron and his art, go to his website, tomdameron.com, or follow him on Facebook or Instagram.
English (US)