Seth Wells Cheney

Seth Wells Cheney (November 28, 1810 – September 10, 1856) was an American artist and a pioneer of crayon work in the United States.

[2] In 1833 he went to Paris and studied under Jean-Baptiste Isabey and Paul Delaroche when he returned he started drawing portraits in Boston in 1841.

He was one of the earliest American artists in black and white, and excelled in giving spirituality to his portraits and ideal female faces, which were sought by collectors.

Among his works are portraits of Theodore Parker with his wife, James Walker (president of Harvard), William Cullen Bryant, and Ephraim Peabody, “Rosalie,” and “A Roman Girl.”[2] On May 10, 1848 he was made an associate of the National Academy of Design.

Three years later on 19 May 1853 he married Ednah Dow Littlehale, daughter of Sargent Smith Littledale and Ednah Parker (Dow).