New Hampshire artist whose ‘daily doodle’ pandemic project lasted 1,727 days dies at 92

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — Robert Seaman, the New Hampshire artist who brightened dark days by creating intricate and imaginative “daily doodles” during the COVID-19 pandemic and then kept at it for nearly five years, has died. He was 92.

Seaman died on Wednesday at Maplewood Assisted Living in Westmoreland, according to his daughter, Robin Hayes. He had struggled with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in recent years and never fully recovered after contracting coronavirus late last fall, she said.

Even in his final days, Seaman wanted to keep up his creative streak, Hayes told The Associated Press on Thursday.

“It is what got him out of bed. It’s what kept him going,” she said. “His day consisted of basically drinking coffee and having his morning doughnut, then spending a couple of hours doodling. And then: lunch, a nap and two or three more hours doodling. It was his happy place.”

Seaman’s final doodle, #1727, was released on Valentine’s Day and depicts a bull and a matador holding a red heart-shaped flag. He created a special doodle the day before for Hayes’ birthday.

Seaman, who left a real estate career at age 60 to become a professional artist, moved into the assisted living facility in southwestern New Hampshire just two weeks before it was locked down in the early days of the pandemic. Barred from leaving his room for months, he quickly returned to his favorite boyhood pastime: drawing.

“The first thought I had was to just do some kind of dark stuff that reflected the nature of the confinement that we were experiencing and the difficulties that were created by this pandemic,” he said in a 2021 interview. “Then it just started to grow, and I thought it would be interesting to do one a day.”

Hayes began sharing the doodles on Facebook and offering originals and prints for sale. By the time Seaman died, he had raised $20,000 for local charities and attracted fans near and far. Cleaning out his apartment, Hayes found a box of letters from people thanking him for his dedication.

Lynn McIntyre, of Hudson, New Hampshire, joined Seaman’s email distribution list after seeing him on a local television program and has looked forward to the daily artwork for years. She even commissioned a piece (Doodle #282) featuring her late daughter’s favorite things: dolphins, sunflowers and the color blue.

“He captured her love for these things perfectly with love and care,” McIntyre said. “Rest in peace, Mr. Seaman, and thank you for brightening even my darkest days.”

The artist started most of his doodles with pencil sketches and finished them with ink, colored pencil and watercolor. Many showcased his fascination with science fiction, others featured whimsical animals and sly humor.

“When I get stuck, I’ll just start drawing an object and it’s like word association. I’ll draw a hand, and all of a sudden that suggests something else, so it just grows from there,” he said in 2021.

Born Sept. 7, 1932, in Smithtown, New York, Seaman grew up in an artistic family and studied art history at Williams College before being drafted into the U.S. Army during the Korean War. He later worked in the paper industry, advertising and real estate before returning to art.

“I was full of anxiety, unhappiness and depression, and the minute I made this jump, as risky as it was, all of that anxiety and depression lifted,” he said of the career move.

Seaman went to work for a Boston greeting card company and began illustrating books and magazines. He later was an artist in residence at Hawk Mountain Resort in Vermont and taught drawing classes for more than 15 years at the Sharon Arts Center in New Hampshire.

Carmela Azzaro, 82, met Seaman in a figure drawing class when Seaman was in his early 80s.

“He was a role model for me to continue my artistic journey as an octogenarian, and each day his doodles reminded me to make every moment of life count,” Azzaro said.

In addition to Hayes, Seaman is survived by his son, Brooks Seaman, two grandchildren and his lifelong friend Appleton Adams. A celebration of his life will be held in the spring, and will likely include some of the daily doodles, Hayes said.

“I think it was the people who loved his doodles and looked forward to them that kept him going,” she said. “He was so grateful for that.”

Seaman himself joked in 2021 that he would probably “kick the bucket” before running out of ideas for his artwork.

“Selfishly, it keeps me occupied and I love doing it,” he said. “But also it does help some other people, which is kind of nice.”