Robert Wood (1889-1979) was born in Sandgate, England and moved to America in 1910. Poor and seeking work as an artist, he traveled America hopping trains.
While in Florida in 1912, Wood met Eyssel del Wagoner who became his wife. He continued to travel and moved on several occasions and in 1924 found San Antonio, Texas as his home of choice. There he met the Spanish artist Jose Arpa, who was Wood's only instructor while in America. Arpa's talent and skill in teaching influenced Wood for the remainder of his long career.
His works matured while living in San Antonio and he painted his finest examples in Texas. In the early 30's he moved to Scenic Loop Road, just outside of San Antonio where he found beautiful surroundings of the Texas Hill Country and room to freely roam. Many of his Texas paintings were created here: Landscapes with bluebonnets, cactus, twisting native oak trees and distant hills, where the subject of his paintings. He also signed his paintings G. Day (Good Day) and Trebor (Robert backwards). He only used these signatures during his Texas years 1924-1942. Many works are found with the G. Day signature. In later years his more common signature was R. Wood and Robert Wood. There is conflicting information on why he did this.
In 1944 or 45, Wood settled in California for the remainder of his life. Painting California landscapes, seascapes and Texas landscapes from pictures and memory. He was represented by galleries in Texas throughout the remainder of his life, which his paintings were always in high demand.
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