Through Oct. 7, a rare collection of paintings by playwright Thomas Lanier “Tennessee” Williams is on view at the Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU in Miami Beach. Best known for celebrated plays such as A Streetcar Named Desire, The Glass Menagerie, Sweet Bird of Youth, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and The Night of the Iguana, Williams was also a dedicated painter. Rarely seen outside Key West, these works reflect scenes and emotions from his life on the Florida island in the 1970s and reveal deeply personal themes.
Citizen of World III, by Tennessee Williams (1970s), oil on canvas board. On loan from David Wolkowsky. The young man depicted in this painting is symbolic of Williams’ acceptance about becoming a target due to his sexuality © Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU
Many of the paintings on display come from the collection of David Wolkowsky, a long‑time friend of Williams and a Key West developer. Williams painted frequently on Ballast Key, Wolkowsky’s private island nine miles from Key West, often working to the soundtrack of Billie Holiday records as he layered color across his canvases.
Wolkowsky and Williams hosted gatherings that drew film and stage stars, public figures and members of prominent families. Despite the notable guest lists, reports describe the Ballast Key fare as modest: hot dogs with potato chips and white wine, served without pretense.
The exhibition, titled “Tennessee Williams: Playwright and Painter,” presents selections from Wolkowsky’s holdings and considers recurring themes in Williams’s visual work, including solitude, identity and the experience of being gay in a time of social prejudice. Together the paintings offer a more intimate understanding of the artist behind the plays, revealing how his visual practice echoed the emotional concerns and personal struggles found in his writing.