Barnyard Oil Painting by Norman Rockwell's Maternal Grandfather HOWARD HILL c1860 Howard Hill, (1830-1888), Barnyard Scene, Oil on Board, c1860, Signed Lower Right, "H. Hill." Image Size: 9 x 12.5 in., Frame Size: 15 x19 in. Frame: Contemporary Condition: Good with light wear, see photos for condition and details BIOGRAPHY Howard Hill was born in England in 1830. In 1858, Hill brought his family over to America. The Hills would live in Yonkers, NY and Hoboken, NJ. Hill originally got a job with Currier and Ives as one of many nameless English artists who created the iconic prints that so captured the spirit of America. He left this job after a short while, likely unhappy with the day-to-day life as a menial worker. In his own paintings, Hill was very fond of painting birds. His most common images feature ducks and quails in scenic landscapes, but he also enjoyed painting farmyard scenes as well. Although Howard Hill never achieved fame for his work as a painter, it seems that he did pass on a considerable talent. Howard's daughter, Mary Ann "Nancy" Hill, learned how to paint from her father and she would pass that love of painting down to her son. That boy, Howard Hill's grandson, was the great American painter, Norman Rockwell. Rockwell never knew his grandfather (Hill died 6 years before Rockwell was born), but he still felt his grandfather's work influenced him. Rockwell was quoted as saying, "I'm sure all the detail in my grandfather's pictures had something to do with the way I've always painted. Right from the beginning I always strived to capture everything I saw as completely as possible."
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