GEORGE ANDERSON ON GEORGE ANDERSON

Emerson wrote, "It is in the doing that you gain the power." As an artist, this quotation has great significance to me. It has encouraged me to paint when it seemed impossible. Painting the same subject over and over and gaining a rapport with the canvas has instilled in me a power and an inner strength which I believe is inherent in my work.

I was born in Montreal, Canada in 1931. I attended commercial art school in Quebec and became a member of the Art Federation of Canada. As a young man I worked as a display artist and later became an art director with a major Canadian publisher. In 1967, I formed G. Anderson Advertising in Montreal. The agency grew and expanded with office in Montreal, Toronto and Brussels. It gained recognition by winning major creative awards, including:

Art Director's Club, New York
Art Director's Club, Montreal
Art Director's Club, Toronto
Hollywood Radio and TV Award for world's best radio commercial
US Television Festival - top 30-second commercial
Canadian Gold Award - best 30-second TV commercial
Graphic Award - Direct Mail Association of Canada
Typography Award - Rolland Paper Company

Throughout my career, I have always been involved with art direction. In 1981, I moved with my family from Montreal to Exeter, New Hampshire. Two years later, I sold the agency to the employees to work on a new career in fine art.

Over the past 20 years I have worked daily on my career as a fine artist. I have had group and solo exhibitions of my paintings, including:

Noho Gallery, New York (group show)
Jules Gallery, Boston (group show)
Rockport Art Association (solo show)
Judi Rotenberg Gallery, Boston (solo show)
Granary Gallery, Martha's Vineyard (group show)

Awards

Ann Fisk Award of Creativity in Fine Art (1998)
Ann Fisk Award of Creativity in Fine Art (1999)
Aimee B. Davis Memorial Award for Excellence in Painting (2001)

In 1994, I was Artist and Residence at the Vermont Studio Center. I have also studied figure drawing and advanced painting at the University of New Hampshire, and printing and sculpting at Monserrat College of Art. At present I have studios and galleries in Rockport, Massachusetts and San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. My paintings have been collected in Canada, Europe, Asia and in all 50 American states.