Albert Proom

Albert Proom 1933 - 2007 Highly regarded local artist Albert Proom died June 27 at the age of 74. His talent for faux-finishing and trompe I'oeil have made Proom the chosen painter among Bay Area glitterati. When Kathryn Crosby wanted roses cascading down her dining room wall, she called Proom. When Gordon and Ann Getty desired help with decorations, they rang AI. Born in Nevada City and raised in Grass Valley, Al Proom came to San Francisco in 1951 and landed a job at Gump's where he became display director. A winning entry in a display design contest in 1959 earned him a prize trip to Rome. He returned and remained in Italy for several years. His love for that culture is still evident in his paintings. To understand this self taught artist's work, imagine classic and natural form throbbing with luminous vitality and meticulous detail. Al often presented period themes in contemporary compositions as fresh as they are risky. One of Proom's friends dubbed his work "hyper-realism," but he resisted being labeled a realist. AI would often say, "Look for the potential not the usual," and then translated his vision into the most extraordinary presentation of the ordinary. In 1970 he began teaching painting at the Jean Henry School of Art in San Francisco. Throughout the 1970s and 80s Mr. Proom completed a distinguished series of private mural and art commissions for prominent Bay Area clients including Whitney Warren, Herb Caen, Count Rene de Chambran, Kathryn Crosby, Cyril Magnin and many more. His art has been featured in solo, group and theme exhibits at Gumps, Shreve's Jewelers, the Legion of Honor and museums and galleries in California, New York and Italy. Hackett-Freedman Gallery, San Francisco, currently handles Albert Proom's work. He is survived by his second cousin Paul Proom of Berkeley; his significant other, Robert C. Rady of Camas, WA, and a host of friends, students and admirers. His life and accomplishments are being celebrated with a private Memorial Bus Tour to area homes benefiting from his imagination and art. Mr. Proom requested cremation by the Neptune Society.