Collections record Beta

Oil Painting - Dr. Lemuel Thomas and son Frederick

2007-18-1

Paintings shows subjects from waist up. Dr. Thomas has long dark brown hair and blue eyes. He is wearing a blue/grey coat with yellowish colored pants and vest, white cravat. He is holding a book in his lap. Son, Frederick is standing to the left of his father with one hand on Dr. Thomas' leg. He is wearing a green jacket with pink lining and brass buttons. White collar with large ruffle. Behind father and son is a book shelf with leather bound books and a crimson curtain. Signed on bottom left hand corner "Ralph Earl 1795" Newer frame - grain painted on outside edge with gold border around canvas

Donor's husband, Winthrop Carter Lockwood was a direct descendant of Frederick Thomas. Paintings have been passed down through family.

Ralph Earl was born in Worcester County, Massachusetts to a family of farmers and craftsmen. A Loyalist, Earl refused to fight during the Revolutionary War, eventually fleeing to England and leaving his wife and children. In England, Earl studied in the studio of well-known American artist and expatriate Benjamin West. He returned to America after the war with a new wife and established himself as a portraitist in New York. Alcoholism and growing debt landed Earl in prison from 1786 to 1788. With the aid of New York patrons, he regained his freedom through portrait commissions and settled in Connecticut. His straightforward portraits and occasional landscapes are noted for highlighting the achievements and material wealth of his Connecticut clientele.

• Earl, Ralph, 1751-1801

1795

35" long x 31" wide

• wood
• canvas
• oil