During our recent tours in north Louisiana and the Florida Panhandle, the question arose several times regarding George Rodrigue’s most popular paintings. “My favorite painting,” he’s quick to reply, “is always the one I’m working on now.” (pictured, George Rodrigue at his easel in Carmel Valley, California, 10/6/11) But for the rest of us, humanContinue reading “Popular Art: Famous Paintings by George Rodrigue”
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Go North (to Shreveport) and Learn
Shreveport often gets a bum rap. “It’s east Texas,” claim many, as though that’s a bad thing. This Red River city fights for not only Louisiana’s embrace, but also the South’s. And yet Shreveport, along with nearby north Louisiana cities such as Natchitoches and Bossier City, cheers on the Saints and LSU. They talk aboutContinue reading “Go North (to Shreveport) and Learn”
An Artist’s Wife ( … okay, now on facebook)
“To be an enthusiast had become her social vocation and, sometimes even when she did not feel like it, she became enthusiastic in order not to disappoint the expectations of those who knew her.”* (pictured above and below, sharing the art of George Rodrigue with Baton Rouge students during a drawing workshop last weekend atContinue reading “An Artist’s Wife ( … okay, now on facebook)”
Talk About Good!
In 1979 George Rodrigue loaned twenty of his Cajun paintings for use in Talk About Good II, a cookbook produced by the Junior League of Lafayette, Louisiana. The paintings introduce the book’s chapters and include dinner scenes, seafood preparations and Cajun characters, each complemented by Rodrigue’s brief descriptions. Rodrigue writes about the cover, Kiss MeContinue reading “Talk About Good!”
Honesty, an Image for Peace
Following 9/11, George Rodrigue, like people everywhere, remained shell-shocked for years over the hatred that spawned a terrorist attack. Although he painted God Bless America in direct response, the tragedy of that day and the desire to help, to change the world even in some small way, resonated long after. The success of the GodContinue reading “Honesty, an Image for Peace”
Rodrigue on the Red River
George Rodrigue has a long history with Shreveport, a northern Louisiana city oftentimes dismissed by southern Louisiana as ‘east Texas.’ As a child, Rodrigue’s own family, in fact, ignored this important part of Louisiana’s culture: “Growing up in New Iberia,” says George Rodrigue, “our travel plans meant east to New Orleans or Biloxi, or westContinue reading “Rodrigue on the Red River”
Chef Paul Prudhomme
If George Rodrigue has a chef’s counterpart, it’s Paul Prudhomme. They grew up in the relatively close Cajun towns of New Iberia and Opelousas, Louisiana. As young boys both pursued their passions as career goals, determined to hone their talents and define their lives with innovative, bold and personal contributions to the art of paintingContinue reading “Chef Paul Prudhomme”
Inspired by Louisiana and Scale (New Paintings)
George Rodrigue’s newest paintings, his most important collection in years coming out of New Orleans, are huge, most 4×6 feet or larger. Normally he paints in his studio in Carmel Valley, California, with long days at his easel and, aside from the occasional houseguest, few interruptions. This year for the first time in more thanContinue reading “Inspired by Louisiana and Scale (New Paintings)”
White Linen Night, the Unexpected
Updated 8/1/13: Don’t miss White Linen Night 2013 on Saturday, August 3rd, featuring the George Rodrigue Foundation of the Arts in the New Orleans Arts District. Details at this link. ….Followed by Dirty Linen Night at the Rodrigue Gallery, 730 Royal Street on Saturday, August 10th, 2013; details here. I wouldn’t exactly call it aContinue reading “White Linen Night, the Unexpected”
The Spirit of the Next Hero
“I’m a naïve surrealist,” said George Rodrigue in 1985, “not a sports artist.” This week George Rodrigue unveils his large-scale painting The Spirit of the Next Hero, on view for the first time since he painted it in 1985 as the official poster for the National Sports Festival, an annual event renamed the U.S. OlympicContinue reading “The Spirit of the Next Hero”