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Shelling Corn (1928) 19 3/4" x 15 7/8" |
William R. Leigh was born on a West Virginia plantation, the son of Southern aristocrats impoverished by the Civil War. He exhibited drawing talent as a child, and at the age of 14, his aunt and uncle invited him to stay with them in Baltimore where Leigh could study with Hugh Newell at the Maryland Institute of Art. At the close of the term in 1883, Newell advised that the Institute had done all it could for him and he should pursue advanced training in Europe. Bankrolled by two uncles, Leigh began a 13-year stay in Europe, principally studying at Munich’s Royal Academy. In 1896, he returned to NYC and began doing illustration work for “Scribner’s” and “Colliers Weekly”. He was finally able to travel West when he persuaded the Santa Fe Railway to give him transportation in trade for a Grand Canyon painting. Pleased, the railway commissioned five more pictures. Leigh continued to travel to the West for the next 50 years, concentrating on Western subject matter, particularly Navajo and Hopi Indians. Braarud Fine Art is interested in all works by W. R. Leigh including oils, watercolors and early illustrations. |