Hicks, Edward (1780-1849), was an untrained American folk painter whose works reflect his Quaker religious beliefs. At the age of about 22, Hicks became an unpaid, wandering Quaker minister. This was his main vocation. Hicks had developed an extraordinary sense of design while he was apprenticed to a carriage maker. Throughout his life, Hicks supported himself by decorating carriages and tavern signs. The bold flat colors and strong outlines that he developed during these activities are the main characteristics that dominate Hicks’s paintings.
From 1820 to 1849, Hicks painted more than 60 versions of The Peaceable Kingdom, which he based on the Biblical prophecy in Isaiah 11: 6-9. In God’s peaceable kingdom, the lion would lie down with the lamb and a child would lead all creatures. Quakers believed that salvation lay in the “peaceable kingdom” of a serene and well-ordered heart. Hicks visualized this belief in spiritual landscapes crowded with animals that symbolize human vices and virtues. In addition, Hicks painted patriotic historical themes and rural scenes. Hicks was born on April 4, 1780, and died on Aug. 23, 1849.
