At 94, Trenton Artist Laureate Thomas Malloy is inspired by his retrospective.
By: Jessica Loughery
A small crowd of patient art enthusiasts fills the down stairs room of a quaint gallery on West Mechanic Street in New Hope, Pa. The owners serve drinks and snacks to those admiring the watercolor paintings adorning the room. A man clutches a painting he once bought, hoping its creator will sign it. Everyone awaits the local legend’s arrival.
Thomas Malloy, 94, is rolled in from the back in his wheelchair. One by one, his public turns around to see the prolific artist. Room-wide applause ensues. With his coat across his knees, hands folded in his lap, Mr. Malloy smiles at his admirers from under his hat.
"My heavens, I can’t believe it," he exclaims, calmly yet excitedly. His eyes climb the wall from painting to beautifully framed painting, then gaze over the people present, each one anxiously waiting to speak with him.
"Thank you all for coming," he says to everyone. He is contagiously cheerful and visibly thankful for a group of people so appreciative of his work. They start crowding around him, waiting their turn to ask, "Do you remember where this building was?" or "What year was this piece painted in?"
One lady asks about a large, green-toned watercolor on an easel. He closes his eyes and grasps his chin. "That’s in Baltimore," he says, "Ellicott City." There’s a soft collective murmur of "ah," "oh," and "yes."
The painting is called "Fog Lifting On the Old Stone House," and is one of 25 paintings on view during a retrospective exhibition of Mr. Malloy’s work at BOI’s of New Hope running through Dec. 3. Though he is no longer able to paint, Mr. Malloy came out to the exhibition reception on a recent Saturday, to the delight of gallery owners Lonn Braender and Bruce Oswald.
"(Mr. Malloy) is actually the first artist we wanted to show when we opened two years ago, but we couldn’t find him," Mr. Braender says. "We contacted someone who represented him previously, but he wouldn’t give us any information. Then, we met someone who knew his niece, Ida, so we were put in touch with her."
Mr. Braender had owned a Thomas Malloy painting and had been watching the artist for years. He relates memories of one of the last times he met with him, at a show at Triangle Art Center in Lawrence in the mid-’90s. "He was very friendly, jovial, joking and talking with everyone," Mr. Braender says.
Mr. Malloy moved to Trenton from Dillon, S.C., in 1923. Though he always held an inclination toward drawing and other artistic activities, it was not until after his 1967 marriage to Dorothy Buck, a major inspirational force in his artistic career, that he began seriously exhibiting his paintings.
A staunch supporter of the arts, Mr. Malloy is a member of the Trenton Artists Workshop Association, the Garden State Watercolor Society and the National League of Professional Artists, among other artists’ groups. He also is the first Artist Laureate in Trenton.
"As far as Trenton goes, he’s the man," Mr. Braender says. "And the other reason I’ve always liked him is because he’s been known as a blue-collar artist. He sold his art for dirt cheap because he believed his work should be available to everyone. He was prolific, so he could do that."
Mr. Malloy worked in watercolors, painting landscapes, seascapes, churches, houses and an occasional abstract piece. "Stairway to Heaven," which portrays a series of pink, purple, blue and gray trapezoids, was painted in 1987 and is the only abstract in this show. A motif among a number of paintings on display is bare trees. Dark, thin branches stand out in "Road at Sunset," "Fall Shadows" and "After Sundown."
The paintings were brought to the gallery by Mr. Malloy’s niece, Ida Malloy, who was more than willing to arrange the exhibition with Mr. Braender and Mr. Oswald.
"When I was a little girl," Ms. Malloy says, "My father used to make me go to his shows and, as I got older, I started enjoying it." Now, Ms. Malloy manages her uncle’s artwork and exhibitions. She says the last show he did was at her church, First Presbyterian of Trenton, back in February. She hopes to do more shows in the coming months.
"I’ve started to realize I can’t become attached to Tom’s art," she says, though she laughs when asked if this collection represents the last of his artwork.
"This is a small percentage," Mr. Malloy confirms.
Pleased to be among folks he can talk art with, Mr. Malloy seizes the opportunity to share his knowledge. "Someone once said, ‘Watercolor is a gambler’s medium,’" he begins. "You just don’t know, because if it looks right when it’s wet then it’s wrong. As it dries, the magic of the watercolor (comes through), but it looked like nothing when it was totally wet." He gestures up toward the paintings on the wall, some of which have already been purchased by those intently listening. "All this you see looked liked mud," he says with a chuckle.
Ms. Malloy says that recently her uncle asked to be brought his paints. A fall last March has kept him off his feet and unable to paint for most of the year. Regarding painting again, he says, "I want to every day. Seeing all these paintings (I’ve done), it’s almost unbelievable. When you paint in watercolors, you have to (work) so fast."
Thomas Malloy A Retrospective of Work Spanning 30 Years is on view at
BOI’s of New Hope, 9 W. Mechanic St., New Hope, Pa., through Dec. 3. Gallery hours:
Fri.-Sun. noon-late evening and by appointment. For information, call (215) 862-8292.
On the Web: www.boisofnewhope.com

