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266:. The painting was originally commissioned for the interpretive center at the Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site. Then President Clinton and his first lady asked to hang it in the White House while the interpretation Center was under construction; it remained in the White House for five years until its permanent installation back in Little Rock. The painting in the case as it hangs on the wall is 54.5" tall by 66" wide.
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In 2002, the U.S. Congress declared 2003 the "Year of the Blues." Hunt was designated the
Official Artist for the celebration and he created a new set of pieces for a national tour. The exhibit of 26 paintings was called "Conjurating the Blues, The High Cotton Tour." It depicted the history of blues
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to pursue his studies in art further through post-graduate work. He also studied at New York
University. His works have cubist and abstract expressionist qualities, but also identifiably depict historical figures and events. His paintings generally feature bright colors and bold strokes of acrylic
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Willis
Drinkard, proprietor of Gestine’s Gallery at 156 Beale St., provided managerial support for Hunt from 1989 to 2004. In 1992, Drinkard, Hunt, and David Simmons encouraged the Memphis In May Beale Street Music Festival to create a commemorative poster. From then on, Hunt's popularity soared.
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In 2005, Hunt's 1997 painting "America Cares/the Little Rock Nine" was selected for a set of U.S. Postal
Service stamps commemorating milestones in the Civil Rights Movement. The image depicts the nine students who became the first African Americans to attend Central High School in Little Rock,
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Music
Festival. Many people have seen his work or might even own it on a poster or T-shirt without knowing his name. He was selected to be the "official artist" of 2003's "Year of the Blues," a congressionally endorsed effort to increase appreciation of the Blues as one of America's great
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In 1998, Hunt painted a "Blues Greats" portrait gallery for the
Horseshoe Tunica casino. The 26 paintings in that collection are now permanently on display in an exhibit titled "Mississippi Bluesmen" at the Gateway to the Blues Museum in
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businesses. He was primarily a painter, though he added collage highlights to some of his acrylic paintings that gave a distinctive three dimensionality and texture to the works. For 28 years, Hunt created the official poster for the
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National historic site. His “America Cares/Little Rock Nine,” created in 1997, became a U.S. Postage Stamp in 2005 as part of a set called “To Form A More
Perfect Union.”
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His vivid body of portraiture includes depictions of Sonny Boy
Williamson, Furry Lewis, Howlin' Wolf, Blind Lemon Jefferson and other legendary Blues musicians.
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225:, telling stories of his experience with blues music. Later in 2003, the Blues Foundation recognized his contribution with a "Keeping the Blues Alive" award.
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musicians and illustrations for Blues
Festivals, which ended up in many private collections in addition to galleries, museums, and the walls of
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George Robert Hunt was born near Lake
Charles, Louisiana. He spent much of his childhood in Hot Springs, Arkansas, and played football at the
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Best known works beyond blues musician portraits and many posters for Blues festivals and the Memphis in May Beale Street Music Festival.
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441:"George Hunt Painted the Blues: The artist, best known for his Memphis in May posters, embraced the city's culture"
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Hunt and Drinkard had great success showing his work at the New York Art Expo in 1995, 1996, 1997 and 1998.
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in New York during the opening show. Hunt was featured in many segments of the 13-part "Year of the Blues"
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One such experience was in 1968, when Hunt was one of the pallbearers who carried the Reverend Doctor
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Congo Square poster. During the festival his work was exhibited at the Stella Jones Gallery and the
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contributions to international arts culture, and toured to many places promoting the celebration.
94:(July 6, 1933 – December 4, 2020) was a Southern American artist, best known for his portraits of
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in Memphis for three decades before he became a full time artist later in life.
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500:"Memphis artist George Hunt has died: 'He painted what he knew out of life.'"
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at Pine Bluff, while studying art. His favorite artist from an early age was
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in Memphis, TN. The work now hangs in the National Museum of Civil Rights.
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In 1993, Hunt painted a piece titled "I Am A Man" as a tribute to the 1968
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The Gateway to the Blues Museum and Visitor Center in Tunica, Mississippi
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America Cares historic plaque, Central High School National Historic Site
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paint, with some relief effects via collage-style multi-media additions.
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body to the plane for its return to Georgia after his assassination.
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525:"To Form A More Perfect Union Commemorative Stamps Publicity Kit"
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2003 "Keeping the Blues Alive" award from the Blues Foundation.
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403:"George Hunt, Iconic Blues Artist, Created History on Canvas"
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Hunt's work reflected his life experience growing up in the
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In 1998, he was selected to be the featured artist for the
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The Melvin Holmes Collection of African American Art
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Museum’s American Music Master’s annual conference.
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228:In 2005, Hunt was selected as the artist for the
213:music in America. The title painting hung in the
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262:declared segregated schools unconstitutional in
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363:List of artworks on stamps of the United States
342:The Museum of Pop Culture, Seattle, Washington
176:Beale St. Memphis t-shirt. Art by George Hunt.
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339:Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Cleveland, Ohio
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427:The 2005 Commemorative Stamp Yearbook
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603:"The Keeping the Blues Alive Awards"
150:George Washington Carver High School
16:African American artist (1933–2020)
755:20th-century American male artists
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730:20th-century American printmakers
498:John Beifuss (December 4, 2020).
401:Wiley Henry (December 10, 2020).
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469:"Hunt, George, (I Am A Man III)"
192:Little Rock Central High School
710:21st-century American painters
705:20th-century American painters
305:America Cares/Little Rock Nine
221:radio series, produced by the
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735:University of Arkansas alumni
578:"The Blues; Project Overview"
439:Jon W. Sparks (May 4, 2021).
740:University of Memphis alumni
635:George Hunt Official Website
234:Ogden Museum of Southern Art
199:Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
336:, San Francisco, California
318:Gateway to the Blues Museum
264:Brown v. Board of Education
258:Arkansas in 1957 after the
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745:New York University alumni
182:sanitation worker’s strike
700:African-American painters
504:Memphis Commercial Appeal
725:American modern painters
720:American collage artists
223:Experience Music Project
143:Martin Luther King Jr.'s
750:Painters from Louisiana
330:, Cheyney, Pennsylvania
715:American male painters
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132:University of Arkansas
68:Memphis, Tennessee, US
445:Memphis City Magazine
407:The Tennessee Tribune
320:, Tunica, Mississippi
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215:Radio City Music Hall
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162:University of Memphis
85:Cubism, Expressionism
473:Black Art in America
353:African-American art
312:Selected collections
207:Tunica, Mississippi
156:Career as an artist
553:"About the Museum"
328:Cheyney University
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35:George Robert Hunt
160:Hunt went to the
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293:Dancin Blues
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278:Works of art
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108:Beale Street
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63:(2020-12-04)
45:July 6, 1933
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695:2020 deaths
690:1933 births
612:January 18,
562:February 5,
537:January 31,
92:George Hunt
25:George Hunt
684:Categories
509:January 3,
450:January 3,
412:January 3,
369:References
301:(painting)
299:I am a Man
295:(painting)
289:(painting)
126:Early life
41:1933-07-06
671:Biography
287:Blues Man
50:Louisiana
347:See also
82:Movement
77:Painting
645:Portals
624:Sources
582:pbs.org
100:Memphis
358:Cubism
253:Legacy
243:Awards
48:rural
374:Notes
96:Blues
614:2023
589:2023
564:2023
539:2023
530:USPS
511:2023
480:2023
452:2023
414:2023
58:Died
52:, US
31:Born
326:of
219:PBS
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
