He was born, it is believed, in Switzerland, on April 5, 1716. About 1739 his parents with their three sons joined the colony of Swiss and German immigrants then lately settled in Orangeburg County, S. C. One son, the Rev. Christian (or Christianus) Theus, became a celebrated and effective preacher in South Carolina.
What training in art Jeremiah may have had is unknown.
By 1740 he was painting in Charleston, for he advertised, August 30, 1740, in the South Carolina Gazette: "Jeremiah Theus, Limner, gives notice that he is removed into Market Square, near Mr. John Laurens, Sadler, where all Gentlemen and Ladies may have their pictures drawn, likewise Landscapes of all sizes, Crests and Coats of Arms for Coaches and Chaises. Likewise for the convenience of those who live in the country he is willing to wait on them at their respective Plantations. " Four years later, November 5, 1744, he inserted a notice in the Gazette "to all young Gentlemen and Ladies inclinable to be taught the Art of Drawing" that he would open an evening school at his house in Friend Street, where "every Branch of that Art" would be taught "with the greatest Exactness". Thus began a career during which Theus made likenesses of many men and women of the southern colonies.
In connection with an exhibition of colonial portraits at the Copley Gallery, Boston, about forty canvases by Theus were listed, some of them previously mistaken for works by John Singleton Copley. Several portraits were of the South Carolina Huguenot connection, with whom Theus was evidently intimate: Samuel Prioleau and his wife, Mr. and Mrs. Gabriel Manigault, Peter Porcher, Mrs. Thomas Cordes, and others. Among his portraits of Jewish sitters were those of Mr. and Mrs. Manuel Josephson. A not inept characterization of Theus' artistry is that of Dunlap, who says that, though the faces were painted with great care, "he had not the art to give grace and picturesque effect to the stiff brocades, enormous ruffles, and outre stays and stomachers of our grandmothers; or the wigs, velvet coats, and waistcoats of our grandfathers. His pictures were as stiff and formal as the originals, when dressed for the purpose and sitting for them. " The characteristic concealment of the sitter's hands may indicate a weakness in his powers, but his drawing was accurate, his coloring good, and the likenesses unmistakably true.
He accumulated a sizable fortune, his estate including a house at Broad and Mazyck streets, and a pew in the south gallery of St. Michael's Church, Charleston.
Today paintings by Theus can be found in a number of American museum collections, including those of the Brooklyn Museum of Art, the Worcester Art Museum, the Gibbes Museum of Art, the Telfair Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Doubtless many of his portraits, unlisted, the artist's name unknown to the owners, still hang in plantation houses.
Theus married, January 13, 1741/42, Elizabeth Catherine Schaumloffel, who died November 8, 1754, leaving three sons and two daughters. Late in life he married Mrs. Eva Rosanna Hilt, who bore him two sons and two daughters.
