George Rodrigue

by Lawrence S. Freundlich

George Rodrigue's paintings and prints of that intriguing canine known as Blue Dog have brought him international renown. Exhibited from Japan to Germany and across America, the golden-eyed Blue Dog is fast becoming a contemporary icon. George Rodrigue: A Cajun Artist is the first major monograph on the artist and surveys his career from student days in the early 1960s to the present. The book explores his artistic education, aesthetic principles, and Cajun legacy, and. Presents a broad survey of the various stages of his career, with concentration on his Cajun period and the development and fruition of the Blue Dog story. Born in New Iberia, Louisiana, in 1944, George Rodrigue is a scion of Cajun culture. Stricken with polio as a child and bedridden for months, he took up painting and drawing to pass the time. He showed himself to be a masterful draftsman. His talent was recognized immediately, and he was encouraged by his parents and. Teachers. From the University of Southwest Louisi