About Tom Seghi

Born in 1942 and raised in Chicago, Tom Seghi was the first in his Italian-American Catholic family to attend college. Seghi’s original intention was to study architecture but on a summer break from college, he traveled to Provincetown in Massachusetts, where he worked as a waiter and fell in love with the vibrant abstract expressionist art scene he found there. Upon returning to Northern Illinois University (NIU), he changed his career path and began his serious quest to excel as an artist. During his graduate studies at the Art Institute of Chicago, Seghi earned a reputation as an artist to watch. After graduating, he moved to Vancouver, BC, Canada, where he first exhibited his work.

Seghi then settled in Missouri in 1972 to raise a family. He set up a studio where he did photo restoration and portrait paintings. He continued to paint large Midwestern landscapes while he taught art at local universities including Washington University in St. Louis, Webster College and Southern Illinois University. With equal ease as an art educator and painter, Seghi recognized local talent and created the Seghi Gallery where he displayed local artwork.

When first exposed to sailing by a neighbor in Missouri, he pursued it avidly. His fascination with sailing partly motivated him to move from the land-locked heartland and the muddy Mississippi to Florida in 1988. There he launched his sailboat in the open turquoise waters. As captain of several racing sailboats over the years, Tom led his crew to numerous victories.

Concurrently, he was juried in by the South Florida Art Center (now known as ArtCenter/South Florida). As a resident artist, he painted prolifically in his studio on Lincoln Road in Miami Beach. During this time, his work was discovered by numerous galleries and was exhibited nationally and internationally.

Although Seghi’s claim to fame was his talent for painting, those who knew him recognized his extraordinary quality as a human being. With an inquiring mind, informed by a high degree of originality, intelligence and personal integrity, Tom was considerate, eager to learn new things, talented at whatever he put his mind to, and a devoted family man. In addition to being an artist, educator and sailor, he wore the hats of a tennis player, a golfer and a do-it-yourself handyman.

Tom Seghi died of a heart attack on a visit to his hometown in July 2011. His immediate survivors include his widow Laya Firestone Seghi, a psychotherapist in private practice in Hollywood, FL; daughter Anniel (Danny Nagler) and twin sons Daniel (Samantha) and Gabriel (Lea), six granddaughters and two grandsons, all living in Florida.

As a friend, a brother, a husband, a father and grandfather, Tom will be remembered by those who loved him. But for those that didn’t know Tom Seghi personally, his paintings continue to exhibit his unique vision and legacy.