Reuben Tam was born on Kaua'i, the northernmost of the Hawaiian Islands. His early, formative years were spent combing its beaches and coastlines, while his later, mature years took him to another island in another ocean, Monhegan, off the coast of Maine. These two places shaped his entire life and informed both the subject matter and the spirit of his painting and his poetry.

While his painting and his poetry were seemingly disparate disciplines, they were both expressions of the same unique vision, a vision born of his love of the natural environment and his complete immersion in it. Every aspect of his professional and personal life, with its myriad interests and activities, reflected this vision.