Miscellany

THE ART OF GEORGE RODRIGUE

INTRODUCTION BY GINGER DANTO
PREFACE BY MICHAEL LEWIS

November 2003

This long overdue retrospective features 265 paintings spanning Rodrigue's 40-year career. With a text by art historian and former ARTnews correspondent Ginger Danto, this is the first outside view and analysis of Rodrigue's paintings in book form. In addition to his best known Cajun and Blue Dog paintings, it covers all the distinct phases of his work, beginning with his college Pop and Abstract canvases, followed by oak trees and Cajun folklife, and ending with his increasingly conceptual Blue Dog works and recent Hurricane paintings.

Booksigning:
April 3, 2004
Pensacola, FL 1 p. m.
Pensacola Museum of Art (850)432-6247

	RODRIGUE CHOSEN TO PAINT OFFICIAL INAUGURAL PORTRAIT Governor-elect Kathleen Babineaux Blanco adds her presence to the already colorful history of Louisiana politics as of November 15, 2003, when the state broke new ground and elected its first female governor. Governor Blanco's inaugural committee commissioned artist George Rodrigue to paint her official portrait to commemorate the event. In the painting, the sun dawns on the Louisiana landscape and the state's capital, symbolizing Governor Blanco's promise of a "new Louisiana." Formed by the roots of the Louisiana live oak, the state's shape forms at the base of the tree. Governor Blanco stands amidst her own roots --- Acadiana. On the left, the statue of Evangeline, Louisiana's heroine from Longfellow's poem, lingers as a ghost of historic and strong Louisiana women. On the right, the artist's most famous symbol, the Blue Dog, appears in its original form, as the Cajun loup-garou , a ghost dog or werewolf that, according to legend, lurks in the sugarcane fields of New Iberia, home to both George Rodrigue and Governor Blanco. Beginning January 11, 2004, the painting will hang on public display for six weeks at the Louisiana State Museum in Shreveport in conjunction with The Art of George Rodrigue , a forty-year retrospective exhibition of the artist's work.
Governor Kathleen Babineaux Blanco 2004 By George Rodrigue
	*THE ART OF GEORGE RODRIGUE* INTRODUCTION BY GINGER DANTO PREFACE BY MICHAEL LEWIS November 2003 This long overdue retrospective features 265 paintings spanning Rodrigue's 40-year career. With a text by art historian and former ARTnews correspondent Ginger Danto, this is the first outside view and analysis of Rodrigue's paintings in book form. In addition to his best known Cajun and Blue Dog paintings, it covers all the distinct phases of his work, beginning with his college Pop and Abstract canvases, followed by oak trees and Cajun folklife, and ending with his increasingly conceptual Blue Dog works and recent Hurricane paintings. Booksigning: April 3, 2004 Pensacola, FL 1 p. m. Pensacola Museum of Art (850)432-6247
	TWO MAJOR RETROSPECTIVE EXHIBITIONS IN 2004 Shreveport: January - February - view images from the January opening Pensacola: April - May more information
	ATTENTION LSU FANS Louisiana State University approached Rodrigue for help in raising $3 million to build Mike the Tiger a new, more natural habitat in Baton Rouge. Donors who give a minimum of $50,000 receive a high-quality direct image transfer print, size 30x40, of Rodrigue's painting of Mike, in appreciation of their financial gift. This sort of print gives the illusion that it is an original painting, and is suitable for framing as such. Each one is hand-signed by the artist. more information
Mike the Tiger 25x30 inches Signed and Numbered Edition of 5,000