The kingdoms of Edward Hicks

the long version

Although other books have chronicled the career and the life of Edward Hicks (1780-1849), America's most beloved folk artist, this is the first book to thoughtfully integrate and discuss his secular and religious concerns as they affected his artistic production, particularly the creation of his "Peaceable Kingdom" paintings. A Quaker, Hicks expressed his religious beliefs in his work, depicting an idealized view of the world as he believed it should - and could - have been. Hicks's popularity today is due to the aesthetic appeal of his paintings, to the energy and passion expressed in them, and to the interpretive challenges they present.