George S. Stuart
Encyclopedia
George Stuart is an American sculptor, raconteur and historian. He has traveled the United States presenting historical monologues about the last four centuries in the Americas, Europe, Russia and China. To help audiences visualize the personalities in his monologues, Stuart created over 400 historically accurate, quarter life size sculptures of personages with political influence from the 16th to the 19th century. His works have been exhibited in The Smithsonian and Clinton Presidential Library as well as museums and libraries throughout the United States.
of the French Palace of Versailles
and began to experiment with the human form after receiving an articulated marionette
as a gift.
Stuart attended Georgetown University
and the American University
in Washington, D.C.
where he studied history, economics, languages and international law while preparing to become a Foreign Service Officer
but his academic career was frustrated by dyslexia
, a condition not recognized in those days.
Then, in the early 1950s, he was offered a position at the Smithsonian Institution
, where he sculpted figures of inventors to accompany patent model
s exhibited there. As a member of the Smithsonian staff, he also participated in the development of the President's Wives exhibit.
Later he attended the University of California
in Santa Barbara
, where he was drawn to the performing arts. He began traveling the United States delivering historical monologues about politically influential people from world history in combination with displays of his historical sculptures.
When Stuart moved to Ojai, California
in 1959, he opened The Gallery of Historical Figures and began teaching workshops on figural construction, costuming and sculpting faces. In 1991, the city of Ojai presented Stuart with its Lifetime Achievement in the Arts award. He also has been recognized by the United States Congress
.
in Naples, Florida
. Temporary exhibits have been held at Pasadena Museum of History, The Ojai Valley Museum of History and Art, the Oxnard Library, and California State University
.
Over 350 Historical Figures are pictured and described on the website of the Historical Figures Foundation, a (501(c).(3) non-profit corporation chartered to preserve the sculptures and facilitate their exhibit to educational groups and the general public.
Early Career
As a young boy, Stuart traveled to Europe and became increasingly interested in historical architecture. In his teens, he constructed a scale modelScale model
A scale model is a physical model, a representation or copy of an object that is larger or smaller than the actual size of the object, which seeks to maintain the relative proportions of the physical size of the original object. Very often the scale model is used as a guide to making the object in...
of the French Palace of Versailles
Palace of Versailles
The Palace of Versailles , or simply Versailles, is a royal château in Versailles in the Île-de-France region of France. In French it is the Château de Versailles....
and began to experiment with the human form after receiving an articulated marionette
Marionette
A marionette is a puppet controlled from above using wires or strings depending on regional variations. A marionette's puppeteer is called a manipulator. Marionettes are operated with the puppeteer hidden or revealed to an audience by using a vertical or horizontal control bar in different forms...
as a gift.
Stuart attended Georgetown University
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
and the American University
American University
American University is a private, Methodist, liberal arts, and research university in Washington, D.C. The university was chartered by an Act of Congress on December 5, 1892 as "The American University", which was approved by President Benjamin Harrison on February 24, 1893...
in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
where he studied history, economics, languages and international law while preparing to become a Foreign Service Officer
Foreign Service Officer
A Foreign Service Officer is a commissioned member of the United States Foreign Service. As diplomats, Foreign Service Officers formulate and implement the foreign policy of the United States. FSOs spend most of their careers overseas as members of U.S. embassies, consulates, and other diplomatic...
but his academic career was frustrated by dyslexia
Dyslexia
Dyslexia is a very broad term defining a learning disability that impairs a person's fluency or comprehension accuracy in being able to read, and which can manifest itself as a difficulty with phonological awareness, phonological decoding, orthographic coding, auditory short-term memory, or rapid...
, a condition not recognized in those days.
Then, in the early 1950s, he was offered a position at the Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...
, where he sculpted figures of inventors to accompany patent model
Patent model
A patent model was a scratch-built miniature model no larger than 12" by 12" by 12" that showed how an invention works...
s exhibited there. As a member of the Smithsonian staff, he also participated in the development of the President's Wives exhibit.
Later he attended the University of California
University of California
The University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...
in Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara, California
Santa Barbara is the county seat of Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Situated on an east-west trending section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States, the city lies between the steeply-rising Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific Ocean...
, where he was drawn to the performing arts. He began traveling the United States delivering historical monologues about politically influential people from world history in combination with displays of his historical sculptures.
When Stuart moved to Ojai, California
Ojai, California
Ojai is a city in Ventura County, California, USA. It is situated in the Ojai Valley , surrounded by hills and mountains. The population was 7,461 at the 2010 census, down from 7,862 at the 2000 census.-History:Chumash Indians were the early inhabitants of the valley...
in 1959, he opened The Gallery of Historical Figures and began teaching workshops on figural construction, costuming and sculpting faces. In 1991, the city of Ojai presented Stuart with its Lifetime Achievement in the Arts award. He also has been recognized by the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
.
Recent Activities
George Stuart's Historical Figures are on permanent exhibit at the Museum of Ventura County and the Naples Museum of ArtNaples Museum of Art
The Naples Museum of Art is located at 5833 Pelican Bay Boulevard, Naples, Florida. It houses a diverse collection of art in a three story, facility. Permanent collections include American modernism, 20th-century Mexican art, sculpture and 3-dimensional art....
in Naples, Florida
Naples, Florida
Naples is a city in Collier County, Florida, United States. As of July 1, 2007, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated the city's population at 21,653. Naples is a principal city of the Naples–Marco Island Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had an estimated total population of 315,839 on July 1, 2007...
. Temporary exhibits have been held at Pasadena Museum of History, The Ojai Valley Museum of History and Art, the Oxnard Library, and California State University
California State University
The California State University is a public university system in the state of California. It is one of three public higher education systems in the state, the other two being the University of California system and the California Community College system. It is incorporated as The Trustees of the...
.
See also
George Stuart has created more than 400 Historical Figures in groups to complement his performances. The groups include, American Revolutionary and Civil Wars (Samuel Adams to Abraham Lincoln), English Monarchies (Henry VII to Edward VII), Bourbon Dynasty (Henry IV to Charles X), Czarist Russia (Ivan IV to Joseph Stalin) Manchu Dynasty (Nurhachi to Mao Tse-Tung, Renaissance & Reformation (various rulers and clergy), Conquest of the Americas (Columbus to John Fremont), Really Awful People (history's infamous), Warriors of the Ages, Germanic Myth & Legend (northern pantheon) and his earliest works.Over 350 Historical Figures are pictured and described on the website of the Historical Figures Foundation, a (501(c).(3) non-profit corporation chartered to preserve the sculptures and facilitate their exhibit to educational groups and the general public.
Museums that have exhibited Stuart's work
- Clinton Presidential Center
- Museum of Ventura County
- Naples Museum of ArtNaples Museum of ArtThe Naples Museum of Art is located at 5833 Pelican Bay Boulevard, Naples, Florida. It houses a diverse collection of art in a three story, facility. Permanent collections include American modernism, 20th-century Mexican art, sculpture and 3-dimensional art....
in Naples, FloridaNaples, FloridaNaples is a city in Collier County, Florida, United States. As of July 1, 2007, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated the city's population at 21,653. Naples is a principal city of the Naples–Marco Island Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had an estimated total population of 315,839 on July 1, 2007... - Pasadena Museum of History
- Ojai Valley Museum of History and Art