Henry Peacock

Henry Wilson Peacock of Rock Hall, Maryland an accomplished artist and published author, died at his home on December 30, 2002. He was 76. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on February 27, 1926, he was the son of the late Howell B. and Eleanora Wilson Peacock. Mr. Peacock was educated at The Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, coordinated with the University of Pennsylvania. He became a teacher of drawing and painting and later an instructor at the Philadelphia College of Art and at the Delaware Art Museum. He served his country during WWII stateside and was honorably discharged. After a Cresson scholarship sent him to Europe in 1950 and early success as a realistic painter, he rejected the traditional approaches to painting taught at the academy. In 1957, he founded the Delaware Valley Art Foundation, to promote the use of art in modern architecture. Two years later, he instigated the ordinance in Philadelphia for funding fine arts, which became a model for similar legislation throughout the country. Mr. Peacock’s paintings are represented in more than two dozen museums and public collections. He is the author of “Art as Expression” a teaching book for any painter who wants to grow as an artist and discover how to create more expressive art (Frank Goodyear, Jr. writes in foreword). Mr. Peacock resided and worked at the “Strawberry Factory”, a warehouse in Rock Hall, Md. that he and his family in 1976 converted into a studio, workshops and upper level residence overlooking the Chesapeake Bay. A lifelong sailor, Mr. Peacock designed and built his 35-foot sloop “Ovation”, which was launched from Gratitude in 1989. The boat has won many races, including the Upper Chesapeake Bay Race Series and Governors Cup in 1991. He is survived by a son: Charles H. Peacock of Norristown, Pa. a daughter Polly Anne Peacock of Pikesville, Md., a brother Stansbury Peacock of Hilton Head, S.C. Memorial services will be held on Saturday January 11, 2003 at 2:00 P.M. at Fellows, Helfenbein, and Newnam Funeral Home 130 Speer Rd. Chestertown, Md. Interment will be private. Arrangements by Fellows, Helfenbein, and Newnam Funeral home Rock Hall, Md. www.fhnfuneralhome.com