Tallahassee Artist Paul Tamanian Brings Raw, Multidisciplinary Art to Vail

“Things really started when I quit my job – I managed a sporting goods store – and I moved out to the woods, on a lake, and built my house myself,” Paul Tamanian says.

It’s a humble origin story for an artist who now commands a larger-than-life reputation in Tallahassee, Florida. But for the locals who will see his work this summer, the journey from managing a sporting goods store to exhibiting at the Vail International Gallery is less about the destination and more about the isolation that forged his style.

Tamanian’s career didn’t truly ignite until his 30s. Born in upstate New York and raised in Clearwater, he landed in Tallahassee for Florida State University and decided to stay. He traded the retail floor for a rustic existence, moving out to the woods. For years, he lived seven miles from the state capitol buildings but remained cut off from the modern world. No cell service. No internet.

That isolation wasn’t just a lifestyle choice; it was a catalyst. It allowed him to experiment without the noise of the art market dictating his next move.

“I really just love to make and create stuff, and every piece is different,” Tamanian says. “I love the experimentation, the what-if factor. I even like to see what the paints do when it’s 19 degrees out.”

This isn’t just theoretical curiosity. Tamanian’s approach to materials is visceral. He started with ceramics, crafting unglazed, slab-built pieces that evolved from traditional vases into abstract, horn-shaped sculptures. He moved into metalwork, modifying nickel plates through firing and sanding them until his arms wore out. The results were radical.

Then came the Pollock-esque phase. He spent time outdoors at his rustic studio, using a garden hose to mix inks, paints, and random colors, splashing them onto watercolor boards and later aluminum surfaces. Today, that same chaotic energy finds its way into custom paintwork on midcentury William Plunkett sofas.

“I really just love to make and create stuff, and every piece is different,” he repeats, emphasizing the core of his philosophy. The repetition isn’t redundancy; it’s the anchor of his practice.

The question is whether Vail’s audience, accustomed to the polished aesthetics of high-end mountain galleries, is ready for this raw, multidisciplinary explosion. Tamanian’s work spans clay, three-dimensional metal, large-format paintings, and even custom-painted surfboards. The surfboards, which will be on display, are described by Tamanian as “beautiful, sexy forms.”

His rise wasn’t accidental. He negotiated his first regional gallery showings with Fay Gold in Atlanta, securing space alongside Basquiat and mentors William Morris and Richard Jolley. He didn’t just wait for an invitation; he leveraged tenacity to secure a spot among established names. That same drive brought him to Vail.

The show runs July 3-7, 2026. It’s a brief window for the community to see how a man who built his own house in the woods without internet now creates art that defies easy categorization.

“I even like to see what the paints do when it’s 19 degrees out,” Tamanian says. It’s a simple statement, but it captures the essence of a career built on curiosity rather than convention. For the folks around here, it’s a reminder that innovation often comes from stepping away from the grid, not just climbing it.

The art will be there. The question is whether you’ll look closer.