George Stuart (born 1929) is an American sculptor,

raconteur A humorist (American) or humourist ( British spelling) is an intellectual who uses humor, or wit, in writing or public speaking, but is not an artist who seeks only to elicit laughs. Humorists are distinct from comedians, who are show business ...

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

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and Clinton Presidential Library as well as at other museums and libraries throughout the United States.

Early career

As a young boy, Stuart traveled to Europe and became increasingly interested in historical architecture. In his teens, he constructed a scale model of the French Palace of VersaillesDavid Kelly, "Fascinated by figurines". ''

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'', as reprinted in the ''

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'', September 10, 2001: E5. and began to experiment with the human form after receiving an articulated

marionette A marionette (; french: marionnette, ) is a puppet controlled from above using wires or strings depending on regional variations. A marionette's puppeteer is called a marionettist. Marionettes are operated with the puppeteer hidden or revealed ...

as a gift. Illness deterred him for a time, but he persisted and enrolled in first

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then the American University in

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where he studied history, economics, languages and international law to prepare 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 The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...

, where he sculpted figures of inventors to accompany patent models exhibited there. As a member of the Smithsonian staff, he also participated in the development of the Presidents' Wives exhibit. After Stuart completed a degree in Fine Arts at the

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in Santa Barbara, where he found himself drawn to theater arts, he began touring the country performing historical monologues accompanied by eight to twelve of his figures. He was represented by the Samuel Horton Brown Agency in Beverly Hills, joining the firm's other clients including Margaret Meade. Focusing on power and political intrigue, Stuart developed over 20 programs using his historical figures as visual aids. 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

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"Historical Figures"

Each historical figure begins with a jointed iron wire skeleton in quarter scale that is designed to move like the treasured marionette from Stuart's childhood. The head is modeled separately, beginning with a skull structure built up with clay then molded in plastic. The facial features are defined using a jeweler's loup and fine instruments. Blown glass eyes are then inserted from the inside. The body is then built up with papier maché, cotton fiber, and styrofoam enclosed with wool felt skin. After he chooses an appropriate pose, the figure is then finished with a custom plastique that Stuart developed himself after years of experimentation to achieve the look of life-like skin. He 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),

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( Ivan IV to

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secretar ...

)

Manchu Dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...

(

Nurhaci Nurhaci (14 May 1559 – 30 September 1626), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Taizu of Qing (), was a Jurchen chieftain who rose to prominence in the late 16th century in Manchuria. A member of the House of Aisin-Gioro, he reigned ...

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, Renaissance & Reformation (various rulers and clergy), Conquest of the Americas (Columbus to John Fremont), Really Awful People (including Hitler, Stalin, Mao, Attila the Hun, Vlad the Impaler, Nero, Ivan the Terrible, and the Borgias), Warriors of the Ages, Germanic Myth & Legend (northern pantheon) and his earliest works. One of his most popular presentations focused on history's "Really Awful People" group. "The story begins with a massacre and ends with a slaughter," Stuart observed. "In between we have murder, rape, sex violence, intrigue and political chicanery." AbrahamLincolncirca1832byGeorgeSStuart

Stuart reported his most popular figurines are those of Lincoln. He produced five different versions of Lincoln from his early years to his appearance at the time of the 16th president's assassination. His figures from the American Revolutionary and Civil War periods were featured in the exhibit "Revolution and Rebellion: Wars, Words and Figures." at the William J. Clinton Presidential Library in September, 2011. Stuart's quest for historical accuracy led him to import specially-scaled chain mail, embroidered silks, and Icelandic sheepskin for life-like hair. Stuart fabricated historically accurate metal helmets, armor, weapons, crowns, and accessories. More than 200 of Stuart's Historical Figures now reside in the permanent collections of the Museum of Ventura County where a special gallery was constructed for their display. Other figures are in the collections of the

Naples Museum of Art The Baker Museum (formerly the Naples Museum of Art) is part of Artis–Naples, a multidisciplinary organization that also is the home of the Naples Philharmonic, located at 5833 Pelican Bay Boulevard, Naples, Florida. The museum, opened in 2000, h ...

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. Temporary exhibits have been held at the Pasadena Museum of History, the Ojai Valley Museum of History and Art, the Oxnard Library,

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, and the William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum.

Gallery

File:ComancheWarriorbyGeorgeSStuart.jpg, Comanche Warrior File:James I BestLo.jpg, James I File:MarqsPompadour reclg Best.jpg, Jeanne Antoinette Poisson, Madame de Pompadour File:JChurchillDukeMarl BestLo.jpg, John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough File:NormanKnight Best.jpg, Norman Knight File:Louis XIV Eq Best.jpg, French King Louis XIV File:George III Robes BestLo.jpg, King George III in Robes of State File:GillesdeRetz Best.jpg, Gilles de Retz File:AztecLeopardWarriorv2byGeorgeSStuartt.jpg, Aztec Leopard Warrior File:BorisGodunovbyGeorgeSStuart.jpg, Tsar Boris Godunov File:ChineseEmperorChienLungbyGeorgeSStuart.jpg, Chinese Emperor Chien Lung File:Charles II v2 BestLo.jpg, King Charles II File:ZuluWarrior BestLo.jpg, Zulu Warrior File:SirJohnBurgoyne BestLo.jpg, Sir John Burgoyne File:AbrahamLincolncirca1863byGeorgeSStuart.jpg, Abraham Lincoln File:AlexanderHamiltonbyGeorgeSStuart.jpg, Alexander Hamilton File:CesareBorgiabyGeorgeSStuart.jpg, Cesare Borgia File:AlexanderIINikolaevitchbyGeorgeSStuart.jpg, Alexander II Nikolaevitch File:ChumashFamilybyGeorgeSStuart.jpg, Chumash Family File:GastonD'Orleans Best.jpg, Gaston D'Orleans File:USGrantbyGeorgeSStuart.jpg, General Ulysses S. Grant File:TsarNicholasIIRomanovandTsarevichAlexeiNikolaevichRomanovofRussiabyGeorgeSStuart.jpg, Tsar Nicholas II Romanov and Tsarevich Alexei File:POrleans Regent Best.jpg, Regent Philippe d'Orleans File:MarieAnt children Best.jpg, Queen Marie Antoinette with her children File:Louis XVI 1780seat Best.jpg, King Louis XVI in 1780 File:Louis XV 1745 Best.jpg, King Louis XV in 1745 File:EmpressCatherineIIinrobesofstatebyGeorgeSStuart.jpg, Empress Catherine II of Russia File:EmpressAnnaIvanovnabyGeorgeSStuart.jpg, Russian Empress Anna Ivanova File:Henry VIII v2 BestLo.jpg, King Henry VIII File:ChineseBannerManbyGeorgeSStuart.jpg, Chinese Bannerman

References

Related publications

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External links

Historical Figures of George Stuart (official website)

Introducing George Stuart and his Historical Figures (video)

Monolog videos