Editing Thomas Eakins (section)

== Early Life and Training ==

Thomas Cowperthwait Eakins was born in Philadelphia on July 25, 1844, to Benjamin Eakins, a writing master, and Caroline Cowperthwait Eakins. He grew up in a comfortable middle-class household that encouraged his artistic interests. After attending Central High School, where he excelled in drawing and mathematics, Eakins enrolled at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in 1861. He supplemented his Academy studies with anatomy courses at Jefferson Medical College, beginning the scientific approach to art that would characterize his mature work.<ref name="goodrich">{{cite book |last=Goodrich |first=Lloyd |title=Thomas Eakins |year=1982 |publisher=Harvard University Press |location=Cambridge}}</ref>

In 1866, Eakins traveled to Paris to study at the École des Beaux-Arts under Jean-Léon Gérôme, whose emphasis on accurate draftsmanship reinforced Eakins' own inclinations. He also studied with sculptor Augustin-Alexandre Dumont and painter Léon Bonnat. Time in Spain exposed him to the work of Velázquez and Ribera, whose dark palette and unidealized realism profoundly influenced his development. Eakins returned to Philadelphia in 1870, establishing the studio in his family home where he would work for the rest of his life.<ref name="gallery"/>