Artist

William R. Leigh

born Falling Waters, WV 1866-died New York City 1955
Media - J0010506_1b.jpg - 89404
William Robinson Leigh, © Peter A. Juley & Son Collection, Smithsonian American Art Museum J0010506
Also known as
  • William Robinson Leigh
  • William Leigh
  • W. R. Leigh
Born
Falling Waters, West Virginia, United States
Died
New York, New York, United States
Active in
  • Munich, Germany
Biography

Painter of the American West, writer. Leigh's love of nature was kindled during his youth in W. Va. Reputedly, he was a direct descendant of Pocahontas, and his interest in Native American life was sparked by his legacy. As a field artist for the American Museum of Natural History, he visited East Africa in 1926 and 1928 and painted wild animals. Leigh also wrote books and short stories.

Joan Stahl American Artists in Photographic Portraits from the Peter A. Juley & Son Collection (Washington, D.C. and Mineola, New York: National Museum of American Art and Dover Publications, Inc., 1995)