ABOUT THE COVER ARTIST Robert Seaman September 7, 1932-February 19, 2025

Wherever he lived, artist Robert Seaman's art studio was always the most important part of his space, his daughter, Robin Hayes, says. &emsp;So shortly after he moved into Maplewood Assisted Living in Westmoreland and the COVID-19 pandemic isolated him, and millions more, Seaman turned to what he loved — his drawing. He turned the months-long shutdown into an opportunity by beginning a series of daily doodles. These imaginative, one-of-a-kind drawings sparked happiness that reached beyond his walls. &emsp;One doodle shows a clamdigger's feet and pitchfork near two running clams who say, "Let's get the shell out of here!" Another shows a two-legged watch smashed and scrambled after crashing into a brick wall titled "Stop Watch." &emsp;He shared images with Hayes and friends. When she posted them on social media, people beyond family and friends noticed them, gaining him followers who looked forward to each day's new doodle. People wanted to buy prints, notecards and originals of the works, so Hayes set up an Etsy shop to manage this. &emsp;Half the earnings — about $20,000 — were donated to pandemic relief, Maplewood Assisted Living, and local nonprofits. &emsp;These unique drawings came from Seaman's unlimited imagination and his long years of creating art of all kinds. Doodles ranged from lifelike to whimsical, blending fantasy and mechanical gadgetry elements with real subjects. &emsp;"He doodled in the morning and again after lunch for about six hours a day," Hayes says. "Some of the things that came out of his head were just incredible." &emsp;Seaman produced 1,726 doodles between March 2020 and mid-February of this year, when his family, friends and community lost a beloved man, artist and teacher. Hayes says he never fully recovered from a case of COVID-19 last fall, and he had been battling chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. &emsp;"The whole floor at Maplewood was devastated," says Hayes. &emsp;Art was Seaman's passion throughout his life. The self-taught artist had an artistic family and natural talent. He studied art history at Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts, before being drafted into the Korean War. &emsp;When he returned, he worked in commercial/industrial real estate, but after 30 years of this work, he felt unhappy and tired. At the age of 60, he risked following his dream of becoming a full-time artist. &emsp;That fulfilling change lasted until the end of his life, spanning more than 30 years. During that time, he created illustrations for greeting cards, magazines, and books, drew pencil sketches, and painted them in various mediums. According to his obituary, Seaman's illustrations appeared in Fly Fisherman Magazine, Audubon Society publications and various sporting journals, as well as in books, cementing his reputation as a talented and imaginative artist. &emsp;The father and daughter collaborated to create a few small books featuring adventures of Hayes' childhood teddy bear, Chip, and one combining pears and puns. &emsp;Seaman displayed paintings in galleries in Keene and Portsmouth, New Hampshire and Cape Cod, Massachusetts and taught art classes for 15 years at Sharon Arts Center in Peterborough, New Hampshire. &emsp;"He was really good at explaining things; he could help you look at things differently," notes Hayes. &emsp;In a 2021 interview with Arts Alive (www.artsalive.com) on advice he'd give to someone starting as an artist, he said: "Well, the human condition is the need to be creative in some fashion — that's what humanity is all about. I tell young people to find the thing they love most and pursue it." &emsp;Seaman's life and legacy were celebrated at Stonewall Farm this past April. &emsp;See more of Robert Seaman's work at 368art.com and in the Farm Directory section of this magazine.