Thomas Locker (June 26, 1937 — March 9, 2012) was an American landscape painter and award winning illustrator, and author of

children's literature Children's literature or juvenile literature includes stories, books, magazines, and poems that are created for children. In addition to conventional literary genres, modern children's literature is classified by the intended age of the reade ...

His oil paintings follow in the tradition of the 19th-century

Hudson River School The Hudson River School was a mid-19th-century American art movement embodied by a group of landscape painters whose aesthetic vision was influenced by Romanticism. Early on, the paintings typically depicted the Hudson River Valley and the sur ...

of painting. Born in New York City, Thomas Locker was raised in Washington D.C. where his father worked as a lobbyist. At age six he started training in traditional old-world techniques with painte
Umberto Roberto Romano
. At age seven, Locker won first prize in the children's division of the

Washington Times-Herald The ''Washington Times-Herald'' (1939–1954) was an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It was created by Eleanor "Cissy" Patterson of the Medill–McCormick–Patterson family (long-time owners of the ''Chicago Tribune'' ...

annual art fair. Locker earned an A.B. in Art History at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

and an M.A. from the

American University The American University (AU or American) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Its main campus spans 90-acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, in the Spri ...

, Washington DC. While at the University of Chicago he studied under professor Joshua C. Taylo

future director of the

Smithsonian American Art Museum The Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM; formerly the National Museum of American Art) is a museum in Washington, D.C., part of the Smithsonian Institution. Together with its branch museum, the Renwick Gallery, SAAM holds one of the world's lar ...

. After graduating, he studied art while travelling in Europe. In 1964 Locker began his more than 75 solo exhibitions career, starting with the Banter Gallery, New York City. He painted 17th century Dutch-inspired oil landscapes, selling through

Sears Sears, Roebuck and Co., commonly known as Sears ( ), is an American chain of department stores and online retailer founded in 1892 by Richard Warren Sears and Alvah Curtis Roebuck and reincorporated in 1906 by Richard Sears and Julius Rosen ...

''The Vincent Price Collection''
Chicago. During these years he also taught at Franklin College and

Shimer College Shimer Great Books School ( ) is a Classic_book#University_programs, Great Books college that is part of North Central College in Naperville, Illinois. Prior to 2017, Shimer was an independent, accredited college on the south side of Chicago, or ...

, while he and his wife raised their five children. In 1982, Locker began bringing the world of fine painting to children and young adults, producing thirty-six popular illustrated books. He authored most of these books and illustrated with his Hudson River School style oil paintings. Several books were collaborative works with his second wife, chemistry teacher and weaving exper
Candace Christiansen
Locker also illustrated books for other popular writers such as

Jean Craighead George Jean Carolyn Craighead George (July 2, 1919 – May 15, 2012) was an American people, American writer of more than one hundred Children's literature, books for children and young adult literature, young adults, including the Newbery Medal-win ...

. Many of these books became staples of school libraries. Locker's works received numerous awards including the 1989

Christopher Award The Christopher Award (established 1949) is presented to the producers, directors, and writers of books, films and television specials that "affirm the highest values of the human spirit". It is given by The Christophers, a Christian organizatio ...

, the

John Burroughs Medal The John Burroughs Medal, named for nature writer John Burroughs (1837–1921), is awarded each year in April by the John Burroughs Association to the author of a book that the association has judged to be distinguished in the field of natural hist ...

, the 1984

New York Times Book Review ''The New York Times Book Review'' (''NYTBR'') is a weekly paper-magazine supplement to the Sunday edition of ''The New York Times'' in which current non-fiction and fiction books are reviewed. It is one of the most influential and widely rea ...

Best Illustrated Children's Book and the ALA Notable Books for Children list. Locker experienced a near-death aneurysm in 2002. After this he moved from the

Hudson River Valley The Hudson Valley or Hudson River Valley comprises the valley of the Hudson River and its adjacent communities in the U.S. state of New York. The region stretches from the Capital District including Albany and Troy south to Yonkers in Westch ...

to the less populated

Catskills The Catskill Mountains, also known as the Catskills, are a physiographic province and subrange of the larger Appalachian Mountains, located in southeastern New York. As a cultural and geographic region, the Catskills are generally defined a ...

and returned to full-time oil painting of the American landscape. He remained in Albany, N.Y. until his death in 2012, at the age of 74.

Books

Narrative stories and/or history *''Where the River Begins'' (1984) *''The Mare on the Hill'' (1985) *''Sailing with the Wind'' (1986) *''Family Farm'' (1988) *''Anna and the Bagpiper'' *''The Ice Horse'' (1993) by Candace Christiansen; A boy ice harvests on the

Hudson River The Hudson River, historically the North River, is a river that flows from north to south largely through eastern New York (state), New York state. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains at Henderson Lake (New York), Henderson Lake in the ...

*''Grandfather's Christmas Tree'' *''The Boy Who Held Back the Sea.'' A retelling of the traditional Dutch folktale (1993) Hans Brinker *''

Washington Irving Washington Irving (April 3, 1783 – November 28, 1859) was an American short-story writer, essayist, biographer, historian, and diplomat of the early 19th century. He wrote the short stories "Rip Van Winkle" (1819) and "The Legend of Sleepy ...

Rip Van Winkle "Rip Van Winkle" () is a short story by the American author Washington Irving, first published in 1819. It follows a Dutch-American villager in Colonial history of the United States, colonial America named Rip Van Winkle who meets mysterious Du ...

'' *''

The Ugly Duckling "The Ugly Duckling" () is a Danish literary fairy tale by Danish poet and author Hans Christian Andersen (1805–1875). It was first published on 11 November 1843 in '' New Fairy Tales. First Volume. First Collection'', with three other tale ...

as told by Marianna Mayer'' *''Calico and Tin Horns'' (1992) by Candace Christiansen; dramatization of the Anti-rent Wars *''The First

Thanksgiving Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in October and November in the United States, Canada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Germany. It is also observed in the Australian territory ...

'' (2001), with

''Narrative stories - art themes'' *''The Young Artist'' (1989) *''Miranda's Smile'' (1994) *''

Rembrandt Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (; ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), mononymously known as Rembrandt was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker, and Drawing, draughtsman. He is generally considered one of the greatest visual artists in ...

and Titus: Artist and Son;'' by Madeleine Comora *''Rembrandt and Titus Classroom Posters'' Nature and Science *''To Climb a Waterfall'' (1995) *Sky Tree: Seeing Science Through Art (1995) *''Water Dance'' (1997) *''Cloud Dance'' (2000) *''Mountain Dance'' (2001) *''Hudson: The Story of a River'' (2004), with Robert C Baron *''In Blue Mountains: An Artist's Return to America's First Wilderness'' (2000) Literature and philosophy *''Snow Toward Evening: A Year in a River Valley / Nature Poems'' selected by Josette Frank (1990) *''Catskill Eagle by

Herman Melville Herman Melville (Name change, born Melvill; August 1, 1819 – September 28, 1891) was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet of the American Renaissance (literature), American Renaissance period. Among his best-known works ar ...

'' (1991) *''Home: A Journey through America'' (2000) literary selections of American writers, including

Willa Cather Willa Sibert Cather (; born Wilella Sibert Cather; December 7, 1873 – April 24, 1947) was an American writer known for her novels of life on the Great Plains, including ''O Pioneers!'', ''The Song of the Lark (novel), The Song of the Lark'', a ...

and

Henry David Thoreau Henry David Thoreau (born David Henry Thoreau; July 12, 1817May 6, 1862) was an American naturalist, essayist, poet, and philosopher. A leading Transcendentalism, transcendentalist, he is best known for his book ''Walden'', a reflection upon sim ...

*''Journey to the Mountaintop: On Living and Meaning'' (2007) A writer and a painter’s reflections, journeying in the

Catskill Mountains The Catskill Mountains, also known as the Catskills, are a physiographic province and subrange of the larger Appalachian Mountains, located in southeastern New York. As a cultural and geographic region, the Catskills are generally defined a ...

and

Kaaterskill Falls Kaaterskill Falls is a two-stage waterfall on Spruce Creek (Kaaterskill Creek tributary), Spruce Creek in the eastern Catskill Mountains of New York (state), New York, between the Hamlet (place)#New York, hamlets of Haines Falls, New York, Haines ...

''.'' Conservation *''Images of Conservationists (Series)'': ''Walking With Henry: Based on the Life and Works of

'' (2002) *''Images of Conservationists (Series)'': ''

Rachel Carson Rachel Louise Carson (May 27, 1907 – April 14, 1964) was an American marine biologist, writer, and conservation movement, conservationist whose sea trilogy (1941–1955) and book ''Silent Spring'' (1962) are credited with advancing mari ...

: Preserving a Sense of Wonder'' *''Images of Conservationists (Series)'': ''

John Muir John Muir ( ; April 21, 1838December 24, 1914), also known as "John of the Mountains" and "Father of the national park, National Parks", was a Scottish-born American naturalist, author, environmental philosopher, botanist, zoologist, glaciologi ...

: America's Naturalist'' *''Images of Conservationists (Series)'': ''Teacher's Guide to John Muir'' Native American *''Thirteen Moons on Turtle's Back: A Native American Year of Moons'' (1992) *''The Land of Gray Wolf'' *''The Earth Under Sky Bear's Feet'' *''Between Earth & Sky: Legends of Native American Sacred Places'' Interview *''The Man Who Paints Nature by Thomas Locker'' (''Meet the Author'' series; Richard C. Owen Publishers)

Exhibition catalogs

*Exhibition catalog: "''Thomas Locker: The New American Realism"'' (R.S. Johnson-International Gallery, Spring, 1972) *Exhibition catalog: ''"Thomas Locker: American landscapes: xhibitionSeptember 16-October 4, 1980, Hammer Galleries, New York" ''

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Locker, Thomas American male writers 20th-century American painters American male painters 21st-century American painters 1937 births 2012 deaths Shimer College faculty Franklin College (Indiana) faculty 20th-century American male artists