Wyatt Eaton
Canadian, 1849 – 1896
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Wyatt Eaton, baptised Charles Wyatt Eaton, was a Canadian/American portrait and figure painter, remembered as one of the founders of the Society of American Artists.
Born in Philipsburg, Quebec, Lower Canada, Eaton was a student of the National Academy of Design, New York. In 1872, he moved to Paris and studied at the École des Beaux-Arts under Jean-Léon Gérôme. During this time, he made the acquaintance of Jean-François Millet at Barbizon, and was also influenced by his friend Jules Bastien-Lepage.
After his return to the United States in 1877, he became a teacher in the Cooper Institute, and opened a studio in New York City. He became one of the founders of the Society of American Artists, in which he was the first secretary. Eaton died from tuberculosis at Newport, Rhode Island on June 7, 1896.