Wayman Elbridge Adams (1883-1959) [RA 1922-1959]
American portrait, figure, genre and mural painter ;
Wayman E. Adams ; W. Elbridge Adams ; W.E. Adams ; W. E. Adams ;
[Born September 23, 1883 in Muncie, IN – died April 9, 1959 in Austin, TX]

SAL record control number: 63477 ;

Record level: Person ;

Record type: Artist ;

Biography:

Birth: September 23, 1883 in Muncie, IN ;
Death: April 9, 1959 in Austin, TX ;
Sex: Male ;
Ethnicity: White ;
Zodiac: Libra ;

Known for: Alla prima portraits of important persons ;
Medium: Oil ;
Technique: Painting ; mural painting ;
Subjects: People ; figures ;

Areas: Muncie, IN (1883-1904) ; Indianapolis, IN (1904-1908) ; Florence, Italy (1910) ; Spain (1912) ; Los Angeles, CA (1916) ; New Orleans, LO (several winters) ; Philadelphia, PA ; Birmingham, AL ; Taxco, Mexico (1935-1936) ; New York, NY (1948) ; Austin, TX (1948-1959) ;
Region: Midwest ; South West ;
Lived: Muncie, IN (1883-1904) ; Indianapolis, IN (1904-1908) ; Florence, Italy (1910) ; Spain (1912) ; Los Angeles, CA (1916) ; Taxco, Mexico (1935-1936) ; New York, NY (1948) ; Austin, TX (1948-1959) ;
Father: Nelson Perry Adams (1861-1917), horse farmer and amatur artist ;
Mother: Mary Elizabeth (Justice) Adams (1858-1952) ;
Relatives: Nettye Olive (Adams) Coulson (1885-1978), sister ;
Spouse: Margaret B. (Boroughs) Adams (1882-1965), wife, fellow artist whom he met on his trip to study abroad in Spain with Robert Henri, married 1918 ;
Children: Wayman C. Adams (1924-1981) ;

Training: Herron Art Institute, Indianapolis, IN, early study of art (1904-1908, age 21) ; Private study abroad under William Merritt Chase (1849-1916) (1910) ; Private study abroad under Robert (Henry Cozad) Henri (1865-1929) (1912) ; Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA ;
Instructors: William Merritt Chase (1849-1916) ; Robert (Henry Cozad) Henri (1865-1929) ;
Work: Portraits of Professor Alexander Ernestinoff ; Booth Tarkington ; Oliver Saylor ; Joseph Pennell ; John McClure Hamilton ; President Harrison ; Charles Dennis ; Col. E. M. House ; Leopold Auer ; Agnes Repplier ; Alice Roosevelt Longworth ; Presidents Warren Harding, Calvin Coolidge, and Herbert Hoover, tire tycoon B.F. Goodrich, and golfer Bobby Jones ;

Taught: Old Mill Art Colony, Adirondack Mountains, Elizabethtown, NY (1932-1945) ; Taxco, Mexico (1935-1936) ;
Students: Maltby Sykes (1911-1992) ;

Member: Salmagundi Club, New York, NY, artist member (1922-1959) ; National Academy of Design, New York, NY ; Salmagundi Club, New York, NY ; American Water Color Society, New York, NY ;
Exhibited with: Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL ;
Awards: Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL, Logan medal of the arts ($1,500) (1912, 1918) ; Greenough Memorial Prize, Newport, RI (1925) ; International Expo, Venice, Italy (1918) ; Sesquicentennial Exposition, medal (1926) ; National Academy of Design, New York, NY, Altman prize (1926) ; Carnegie Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, prize (1943) ;

Milestones: Completed paintings in one sitting giving him the nickname “Lightning” ; Advocated alla prima painting ; Was state-wide known as a painting prodigy by age 14 ;

Notes: 

Artworks: