Career
His still life works are also notable. Deakin is considered one of the more obscure artists of a small group that best represent the issues of representing China Town in art He is considered to have had an immediate impact on preservation efforts for California missions with a series of paintings of all of the structures.
Deakin was born in Sheffield, England, on May 21, 1838.
He was apprenticed at the age of 12 to a japanning business, painting landscapes and floral designs on furniture pieces, but received no formal training. By 18, he was a notable architectural landscape artist.
He emigrated to the United States in 1856 with his family to the city of Chicago, where his father opened a hardware store.