This beautifully illustrated biography of S. Seymour Thomas is the
compelling tale of a young boy from Texas who grew up to achieve
artistic fame in Europe. A leading international artist in his day who
studied at the Art Students League in New York and at the Académie
Julian in Paris, Thomas is little known today. This new book by
eminent art historian Cecilia Steinfeldt serves both as a tribute to a
man of substantial artistic accomplishments and as an effort to revive
interest in his distinguished career.
Born in San Augustine, Texas, in 1868, Thomas moved with his
family to Dallas a few years later. He was first recognized as an
artist at the age of eight, when he won a certificate from the North
Texas Fair Association for a pencil drawing of hunting dogs. At age
twelve he illustrated a book about outlaw Sam Bass. As a teenager,
after the family moved to San Antonio, Seymour began painting with
oils and studied under Theodore Gentilz. It was during this time that
Seymour painted his famous view of the San José Mission, featured
on the book's cover.
In Paris, Thomas won several medals at salons and met fellow
American art student Helen Haskell, who became his wife. Once he
had established his reputation as an artist, he turned most of his
efforts toward portraiture, producing likenesses that combined a
meticulous attention to detail with an effort to bring out each sitter's
personality.
This book, published by the Texas State Historical Association for
the Witte Museum, is a fitting tribute to Seymour Thomas's life and
work. Rich in details from family letters and diaries and illustrated
with color reproductions of Thomas's paintings, as well as with family
photos and examples from his sketchbooks, the book is a significant
addition to our knowledge of Texas art and artists.
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CECILIA STEINFELDT is the author of several books, including Art
for History's Sake. She is curator emeritus of the Witte Museum in
San Antonio.
