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Abram Tromka Papers

An inventory of his papers at Syracuse University


Finding aid created by: -
Date: 24 May 1966

Biographical History

Abram Tromka (1896-1954) was a Polish-born American Jewish painter, etcher and serigrapher. He also worked under the name Abraham Phillips.

Born in Poland, Tromka came to the United States at the age of 11 and attended public school in New York City. Although he studied at an early age with Henri and Bellows, Tromka was for the most part self-taught; he worked mostly in oil, gouache, watercolor, serigraphy, drawing and etching. As a youth, he illustrated the book The House on Henry Street by Lillian D. Wald, and his etching entitled "The sweet potato vendor was purchased by the Metropolitan Museum of Art when he was only nineteen.

Tromka's work has been exhibited in museums in the United States and in Central and South America, and is in the permanent collections of several important museums, including the Biro Bidjan Museum in the former Soviet Union.

Scope and Contents of the Collection

The Abram Tromka Papers consists of artwork, correspondence, subject files, manuscripts (both of Tromka and of others) and published material (clippings, press releases, exhibition catalogs).

Arrangement of the Collection

Incoming correspondence is arranged alphabetically; outgoing is arranged chronologically. The remaining series are arranged alphabetically.

Restrictions

Access Restrictions:

The majority of our archival and manuscript collections are housed offsite and require advanced notice for retrieval. Researchers are encouraged to contact us in advance concerning the collection material they wish to access for their research.

Use Restrictions:

Written permission must be obtained from SCRC and all relevant rights holders before publishing quotations, excerpts or images from any materials in this collection.

Subject Headings

Persons

Evergood, Philip, 1901-1973.
Tromka, Abram, 1896-1954.
Tromka, Ann.

Associated Titles

House on Henry Street.

Subjects

Art, American -- 20th century.
Art, American.
Etchers -- United States.
Jewish artists -- United States.
Jews, American.
Painters -- United States.
Painting, American -- 20th century.
Painting, American.
Polish Americans.
Serigraphers -- United States.

Genres and Forms

Articles.
Charcoal drawings.
Clippings (information artifacts)
Correspondence.
Etchings (prints)
Exhibition catalogs.
Photographs.
Sketchbooks.

Occupations

Artists.
Etchers.
Painters.
Serigraphers.

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Preferred citation for this material is as follows:

Abram Tromka Papers,
Special Collections Research Center,
Syracuse University Libraries

Acquisition Information

Gift of Ann Tromka, 1964.

Original artwork, gift of Melanie Levine-Kinne, 2021.

Table of Contents

Artwork

Correspondence

Subject files

Manuscripts

Published material

Inventory