George Grace

A fine news feature on WKBW-TV by Mike Randall, broadcast 9,7,22:

https://www.wkbw.com/news/local-news/with-no-formal-training-george-grace-became-an-award-winning-artist

In June 2005, Pastel Journal ran an article about a term he coined to describe the art of George Grace: technoluminism. Applying the idea of the “Civilized Landscapes” of George Inness and the moods and settings of Edward Hopper and Charles Burchfield to the late 20th and early 21st centuries, Grace believes that neoluminism, or “new light” art represents a revival of representational art—a type of post-postmodern realism. And technoluminism--the light of technology--is a more specific brand of neoluminism in that it relies upon some technological manifestation in the artwork. Ever in pursuit of a rare perspective, a different view, a kind of representation seldom seen, with the stroke of a pastel stick, or the twist of his paintbrush, Grace tries to separate himself, in terms of subject matter and style, from other representational artists while paying homage to so many who came before him. George Grace is a Buffalo native who taught himself to paint in 1981 at the age of 30. “I was living the bohemian life on Buffalo’s West Side, no electric in my apartment, no work, and two of my roommates had just skipped out on the rent. One left behind a box of acrylics, another a 150 foot roll of canvas. I had, to paraphrase Mae West, nothing to do, and lots of time to do it, so I started copying masterworks from a book. My friends in the arts praised the results. Two years later, one of my works was accepted into the Western New York Exhibition at the Albright-Knox. I felt like a total pretender, never having taken any classes or workshops in art.” Now, thirty years and some 2000 artworks later, Grace has exhibited in many regional, national, solo, and curated shows throughout the United States, winning numerous awards for his work. In 2000, he and his wife, Donna moved to Nashville for two years, on a private arts grant, where he produced over 200 works as a member of the Tennessee Arts League, of which he is a signature member. In 2002, the Graces moved back to Buffalo. In 2003, Nashville’s Parthenon hosted a solo exhibition of his works. Since then, Pastel Journal (November 2003) published one of his articles on technique in that medium. Art Calendar (October 2004) published his feature article on grabbing the attention of jurors, gallery owners, and buyers, with his art on the cover. He also teaches classes and conducts workshops in Buffalo and Nashville and has judged many shows. He was accepted to the Buffalo Society of Artists in 2003. In 2016, he became the Society's first four term president since Alex Levy, in the 1930s. As president, he set policy for redesigning the website; bringing about the Video Archive Project (perfected under Beth Pedersen and Videographer Jon Hand), and moving the BSA towards not-for-profit status. In 2017 he took on the task of writing/rewriting the history of the BSA and hopes to finish before the 135th anniversary in 2026. The version, updated from Russell Ram and Albert Michaels' original work, will be full color, hardcover, intermixing the Society's history with that of the United States, the City of Buffalo, and related art movements since 1891, the year of the Society's founding. His works are in numerous galleries and private collections across the United States. He is also a playwright, poet, tournament chess player and retired from remodeling homes.