Sand Dollars

Teeny-Tiny Art Show – A Slideshow

Written by Brian Tarcy

 

PROVINCETOWN – Very likely, only a teeny-tiny part of this story is true.

doug blamy“I lie constantly,” said the subject of this story, Douglas Francis Blamy, 50, of Provincetown, who was selling “teeny-tiny art for a teeny-tiny price” on the ground in front of the Provincetown Tourism office on Saturday.

“If I told you the truth, I’ve already heard the story. If I lie, I never know what I’m going to say. It keeps me amused. I just make up shit. I really don’t know what’s reality,” he said.

There are some apparent realities. One is that in the teeny-tiny art world, Blamy is prolific. “I did these paintings all in Yonkers this winter,” he said. “There is nothing to do in Yonkers.” Another apparent reality is that he is an affable salesman, and a big part of his charm is his self-deprecating ribald humor.

“I can’t spell,” he said. “Why do you think I paint? If I was intelligent, I’d write a novel.”

Again, it is unclear how much of this story is true. The part where he claims he is not intelligent… obviously not true. And the part about him being from Canada, also not true.

Oh, that. Well, see, Bob Martin of Seekonk was walking by when Blamy yelled out, “Teeny-tiny art for a teeny-tiny price.”

At that point, Martin, explained, “I wanted to see what he was selling.” After haggling and discussions of Canada, where Martin is from and where Blamy claimed as home for five minutes, Martin bought a palm tree painting, discounted from $20 to $10.”

“He has a great personality,” said Martin, who was thrilled to meet a fellow Canadian.

Blamy, who minutes earlier said he grew up in Chelmsford, said that Chelmsford joined Canada in 1893. Cape Cod Wave checked this on Wikipedia. Again, not true.

He said he is a self-taught artist and his styles range through tiki art, landscapes, pop art, and abstract. “Every painting has a story,” he said. “If you buy a painting, I’ll tell you the story.” His starting price was $20 on this particular day, but he was willing to negotiate because he had a clear goal. “I just want to wake up with beer in the refrigerator,” he said.

Okay sure, it’s teeny-tiny art. “I’m like a comedian. If you see me in a club, you have to pay $20.” So for $20, you get that plus art.

Blamy took a sip from his half-hidden can of Pabst Blue Ribbon, and acknowledged, despite his self-deprecating ways, his obvious talents in a way that only he can. “I do what I want,” he said. “I don’t pay taxes. I don’t get a permit. Yet the police pull over and buy art from me, while I’m drinking a beer.”

 

— Brian Tarcy

 

 

About the author

Brian Tarcy

Brian Tarcy is co-founder of Cape Cod Wave. He is a longtime journalist who has written for the Boston Globe, Boston magazine, the Cape Cod Times and several other publications. He is the author of "YOU CAN'T SELL RIGHT FIELD; A Cape Cod Novel." He is also the author or co-author of more than a dozen mostly non-fiction books, including books with celebrity athletes Cam Neely, Tom Glavine and Joe Theisman. His previous book was, "ALMOST: 12 Electric Months Chasing A Silicon Valley Dream" with Hap Klopp,who created the iconic brand, The North Face.
For more information, see Briantarcy.com
Brian is a long-suffering Cleveland Browns fan with a long-running NFL predictions/political satire column connecting weekly world events to the fate of his favorite team, now at Whatsgonnahappen.com.

4 Comments

  • I used to be such a sweet sweet thing ’till they got ahold of me,
    I held the door for little old ladies,I helped the blind to see,
    I got no friends cause they read the papers they cant be seen with me,
    An Im feeling real shot down ,Im feeling mean,
    No more Mr Nice Guy,no more Mr Clean.

    Hubba Hubba

    Jenny

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