Edward Brian Seago, RBA, ARWS, RWS (31 March 1910 – 19 January 1974) was an English artist who painted in both oils and watercolours.

Early life

The son of a

coal merchant A coal merchant is the term used in the UK and other countries for a trader who sells coal and often delivers it to households. Coal merchants were once a major class of local business, but have declined in importance in many parts of the developed ...

, Seago was born in

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of the county of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. It lies by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. The population of the Norwich ...

and attended

Norwich School Norwich School (formally King Edward VI Grammar School, Norwich) is a private selective day school in the close of Norwich Cathedral, Norwich. Among the oldest schools in the United Kingdom, it has a traceable history to 1096 as an episcop ...

. He was a self-taught artist (although he received advice from Sir Alfred Munnings and Bertram Priestman) and enjoyed a wide range of admirers from the

British royal family The British royal family comprises Charles III and other members of his family. There is no strict legal or formal definition of who is or is not a member, although the Royal Household has issued different lists outlining who is considere ...

and the

Aga Khan Aga Khan (; ; also transliterated as ''Aqa Khan'' and ''Agha Khan'') is a title held by the Imamate in Nizari doctrine, Imām of the Nizari Isma'ilism, Nizari Isma'ilism, Ismāʿīli Shia Islam, Shias. The current holder of the title is the ...

to the common man. His works have been classified as either

Impressionist Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage ...

or Post-Impressionist and included landscapes, seascapes, skyscapes, street scenes, his garden and portraits. When aged 14, Seago won an award from the Royal Drawing Society, and from then on knew what he wanted to do in spite of his parents' initial disapproval. At the age of 18, he joined Bevin's Travelling Show, and he subsequently toured with circuses in Britain and throughout Europe. In 1937, Seago gave evidence to a police enquiry into a blackmail gang in London's West End who exploited laws against

homosexuality Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or Human sexual activity, sexual behavior between people of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexu ...

. His statement reveals that he had a friendship with a young man in late 1936 who used a fake name and extracted money from Seago by deception. In 1939, "A Rabbit Skin Cap" by Lilias Rider Haggard was published, with the front cover and all other illustrations by Seago.

Wartime camoufleur

Heart problems, identified at the age of seven, dogged him all of his life. He had to resort to subterfuge to join the army at the outbreak of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...

on 3 December 1939, with the Army number 110235 and was employed on developing

camouflage Camouflage is the use of any combination of materials, coloration, or illumination for concealment, either by making animals or objects hard to see, or by disguising them as something else. Examples include the leopard's spotted coat, the b ...

techniques for Field Marshal Auchinleck, with whom he had a lifelong friendship. He continued painting whilst with the Army and gave paintings to those with whom he served. Major Eddy Hodges DSO of 2nd Battalion The King's Regiment may not have been alone in folding his painting so that it fitted in the pocket of his Battle Dress blouse. Edward Seago relinquished his Commission on account of ill-health whilst serving as a War Substantive Captain and was granted the honorary rank of Major on 16 October 1944.

Later career

Such was his popularity that those who wished to buy one of his paintings had to queue at his various annual exhibitions around the world (with the single exception of

Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon (4 August 1900 – 30 March 2002) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 to 6 February 1952 as the wife of King George VI. She was al ...

). "The Queen Mother bought so many that eventually the artist, who died in 1974, gave her two a year – on her birthday and at Christmas.

Prince Philip Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 19219 April 2021), was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he was the consort of the British monarch from h ...

invited him on a tour of the

Antarctic The Antarctic (, ; commonly ) is the polar regions of Earth, polar region of Earth that surrounds the South Pole, lying within the Antarctic Circle. It is antipodes, diametrically opposite of the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antar ...

in 1956, and his subsequent paintings, considered to be among his best, hang at Balmoral." Seago also created a solid silver sculpture of

St George Saint George (;Geʽez: ጊዮርጊስ, , ka, გიორგი, , , died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was an early Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to holy tradition, he was a soldier in the R ...

slaying the

Dragon A dragon is a Magic (supernatural), magical legendary creature that appears in the folklore of multiple cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but European dragon, dragons in Western cultures since the Hi ...

, which serves as an automobile mascot for any state limousine in which the monarch travels. The mascot can be transferred from car to car. When the monarch is not aboard, it is substituted with the symbol of the manufacturer, such as the

Rolls-Royce Rolls-Royce (always hyphenated) may refer to: * Rolls-Royce Limited, a British manufacturer of cars and later aero engines, founded in 1906, now defunct Automobiles * Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, the current car manufacturing company incorporated in ...

Spirit of Ecstasy or the

Bentley Bentley Motors Limited is a British designer, manufacturer and marketer of Luxury vehicle, luxury cars and Sport utility vehicle, SUVs. Headquartered in Crewe, England, the company was founded by W. O. Bentley (1888–1971) in 1919 in Crickle ...

"B". Seago settled in East Anglia with Peter Seymour, his lover and studio assistant, who was an artist in his own right.

Legacy

Seago died of a brain tumour in London on 19 January 1974. In his will he requested that one-third of his paintings currently in his Norwich studio were to be destroyed. There remain about 19,000 water colours and 300 oil paintings worldwide. A major retrospective of his work was held in autumn 2008 in London, as was a Sky Arts 2 television series about Seago fronted by Selina Scott. A Seago exhibition was held at the Portland Gallery, which represents Seago's estate, in June and July 2012. Another exhibition was mounted in June and July 2014. Marking fifty years since the artist's death the Portland Gallery mounted a sales exhibition of Edward Seago's oils, watercolours and drawings on 12th to 28th June 2024.

Bibliography

Seago's published works include: * ''Circus Company'' (1933) * ''Sons of Sawdust'' (1934) * ''The Country Scene'' (1936 – forty-two paintings accompanying

John Masefield John Edward Masefield (; 1 June 1878 – 12 May 1967) was an English poet and writer. He was Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom, Poet Laureate from 1930 until his death in 1967, during which time he lived at Burcot, Oxfordshire, near Abingdon ...

's poetry) * ''Tribute to the Ballet'' (1937 – again in conjunction with Masefield) * ''Caravan'' (1937) * ''A Generation Risen'' (1942) * ''Peace in War'' (1943) * ''High Endeavour'' (1944) * ''With the Allied Armies in Italy'' (1945) * ''A Canvas to Cover'' (1947 – Autobiography) * ''Tideline'' (1948) * ''With Capricorn to Paris'' (1956)

References

Bibliography

External links

*
Portland Gallery are proud to represent the estate of Edward SeagoFifty-six of Seago's paintings courtesy of John Fuller
* ttps://archivesearch.lib.cam.ac.uk/repositories/9/resources/1554 Papers of Edward Brian Seagoheld at Churchill Archives Centre {{DEFAULTSORT:Seago, Edward British Army personnel of World War II Royal Engineers officers Military personnel from Norwich 20th-century English painters English male painters English LGBTQ painters World War II artists 20th-century British war artists Artists from Norwich People educated at Norwich School 1910 births 1974 deaths Camoufleurs English war artists English gay artists Gay painters People from Brooke, Norfolk Members of the Royal Society of British Artists 20th-century English male artists

Early life

Wartime camoufleur

Later career

Legacy

Bibliography

Further reading

References

Bibliography

External links