Figure 1.--This is a detail from Thomas P. Hall's "The Picnic". We have not been able to determine when Hall painted it, but suspect the 1860s. The boys wear Scottish Glengary caps, cut-away jacket suits, bloomer knickers, and striped stockings. Note that the boys wear grey suits, but the girls very brightly colored dresses.

We note a number of highly idealized, rather emotionl paintings by Thomas P. Hall. The British might describe him dismissively as a "chocolate box" painter. He did several memoral naintings involving children such as the "The Altercation", "The Vacant Cradle", "The New Arrival", and "The Picnic". Most are relentlessly happy genre scenes (except "The Vacant Cradle"), perhaps explaining his continuing popularity. They are beautifully painted and provide very detailed depictions of the clothing children wear, especially his paintings done in contemprary times. We not only see detailed depictions of garments, but also Hall provids us color information which of course is lacking in the blck-and-white photography of the day. Unfortunately we have been unable to find any biographical information about Hall. One site suggested his dates were 1837-87, this may have been his active working life as a painter. Another source suggested c1810-c70. Hopefully readers will be able to provide some biographical background.

Created: 3:19 PM 10/11/2008
Last updated: 5:27 PM 10/11/2008