Thomas Henry Thomas (31 March 1839 – 9 July 1915) was a

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, of or about Wales * Welsh language, spoken in Wales * Welsh people, an ethnic group native to Wales Places * Welsh, Arkansas, U.S. * Welsh, Louisiana, U.S. * Welsh, Ohio, U.S. * Welsh Basin, during t ...

artist particularly active in

Cardiff Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...

. He was also interested in botany, geology, history, and archaeology which were often the subjects of his art works. He was a Fellow of the

Royal Cambrian Academy of Art The Royal Cambrian Academy of Art (RCA) is a centre of excellence for art in Wales. Its main gallery is located in Conwy and it has over a hundred members. 240px, Plas Mawr, Conwy Early history During the 19th century there were numerous attempt ...

which was established in 1881. He was a leading force behind the founding of the

National Museum of Wales National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

and in the use of the red dragon symbolizing Wales.

Early life

Thomas was born on 31 March 1839 in

Pontypool Pontypool ( ) is a town and the administrative centre of the county borough of Torfaen, within the Historic counties of Wales, historic boundaries of Monmouthshire (historic), Monmouthshire in South Wales. , it has a population of 29,062. Locat ...

, where his father was president of the Baptist College, though his parents were from Cardiff. He studied at Bristol School of Art, Carey's Art School,

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, then the

Royal Academy Schools The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House in Piccadilly London, England. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its ...

, before travelling to

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

and

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

. He returned to London in 1861 to work as a painter and illustrator.

Life and creative work

In 1866, Thomas returned to settle in Cardiff (Thomas's father had retired there). He inherited his father's house on The Walk in 1880 and this became a place for intellectual discussion in the town. He became very active in the Cardiff Naturalists Society (being president for a while), the Cambrian Academy of Art and the

Welsh National Eisteddfod The National Eisteddfod of Wales ( Welsh: ') is the largest of several eisteddfodau that are held annually, mostly in Wales. Its eight days of competitions and performances are considered the largest music and poetry festival in Europe. Competitor ...

. Thomas was an official guest at the first

Feis Ceoil Feis Ceoil ( ; "Festival of Music") is an Irish music organisation which holds an annual competitive festival of classical music. It was first organised in Dublin in 1897 by Dr. Annie Patterson and Edward Martyn for the purpose of stimulating mus ...

in 1897. Thomas worked for ''The Daily Graphic'' where he depicted different scenes of that time the likes of work on the

Severn Tunnel The Severn Tunnel () is a railway tunnel in the United Kingdom, linking South Gloucestershire in the west of England to Monmouthshire in south Wales under the estuary of the River Severn. It was constructed by the Great Western Railway (GWR) be ...

Portskewett Portskewett ( or ) is a village and Community (Wales), community (parish) in Monmouthshire, south east Wales. It is located four miles south west of Chepstow and one mile east of Caldicot, Monmouthshire, Caldicot, in an archaeologically sensitiv ...

, and royal visits. He illustrated in his painting a "complete catalogue of the major concerns of the 19th century". His painting can be compared with J. W. Goethe and

John Ruskin John Ruskin (8 February 1819 20 January 1900) was an English polymath a writer, lecturer, art historian, art critic, draughtsman and philanthropist of the Victorian era. He wrote on subjects as varied as art, architecture, Critique of politic ...

by the common tradition. As well as formers he tried to connect the art and science more tightly.The unique prints and drawings of T. H. Thomas
Retrieved on 5 Feb 2018 Because of his interest in geology, he discovered an important dinosaur fossil which was unknown to science of that time. This petrifaction was found by him in a large stone stove in the Newton Nottage church' yard. It was named ''Brontozoum thomasii'' in his honour. He died on 5 July 1915. His more than 1,000 prints, drawings and watercolours were given to the

after his death in 1915 according to his will.

Selected works

* ''Elijah and the Ravens'', late 1919, National Museum Wales, National Museum Cardiff. * ''Gannet Settlement on Grassholm, West of Milford'', 1890, National Museum Wales, National Museum Cardiff. * ''Sackcloth and Ashes: Tip Girls Leaving Work'', 1879, Cyfarthfa Castle Museum & Art Gallery. * ''Christ and the Woman of Samaria'', late 1919, National Museum Wales, National Museum Cardiff.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, T. H. 1839 births 1915 deaths 19th-century Welsh painters Artists from Cardiff Alumni of the Royal Academy Schools 20th-century Welsh painters Welsh male painters 19th-century Welsh male artists 19th-century Welsh artists 20th-century Welsh male artists