Edward Hicks

Happy Birthday Edward Hicks!! American Folk Artist Edward Hicks, born today in 1780, was a Quaker from Pennsylvania. He was a sign painter and used his art to express his deep religious beliefs, and love of peace. One of his most favored subjects was the literal translation of Isaiah's Biblical quote, “when the wolf shall dwell with the lamb and the leopard shall lie down with the kid”. He painted this subject, The Peaceable Kingdom over one hundred times. In the painting, the animal forms are flat and the contours are clearly outlined with rich patterns adorning their coats, the children are cherubic and scaled small. He often backs the idea of peace with another group of figures in the background, such as Quakers, Native Americans, early settlers, etc.