Truman Seymour in the Emery Case

Truman Seymour (1824-1891), son-in-law of Robert Weir and brother-in-law of Julian Alden Weir and John Ferguson Weir, was a superb watercolorist who spent his retirement painting in Europe. Seymour was a career military man who both studied and taught art at West Point Academy. His friends included fellow artists Worthington Whittredge, John Kensett, Eastman Johnson, John Casilear and Elihu Vedder and in Florence, where he eventually settled, Henry Roderick Newman. Although Seymour painted throughout his life and exhibited at the National Academy in 1872, it was after his retirement in 1877 that he produced the greatest number of watercolors. Seymour’s work during this period has been described as a “symphony of light and color” by Kent Ahrens, curator of two museum exhibitions devoted to the artist. Seymour traveled widely painting in Seville, Granada, Cordova, Florence, Venice, Lake Como and Clarens. The three works included in this installation were all done in Florence. Seymour’s watercolors have been preserved out of the sunlight for over 100 years and are astounding for their vivid colors.

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