In Memoriam

by Cindee Moyer, Director Emeritus

We received word that acclaimed historian, artist and entertainer, Mr. George Stuart, passed away peacefully at home on August 15. He was the guest presenter at our 2019 conference in Asilomar, where he mesmerized his audience with stories and photos of his life. His work is unparalleled, and he will be greatly missed.

For over five decades, artist and historian George Stuart created more than 400 one-quarter life-size figures, some have been exhibited in the Smithsonian and private collections, to accompany his historical monologues. He has been capturing the essence of history’s most famous and infamous personalities. Rarely have art and history been melded so exactly in works of such breathtaking realism.

Internationally renowned for their exquisite detail and historical accuracy, the George Stuart Historical Figures® represent important personalities of many historical periods.

George Stuart has also created groups of figures that illustrate French, English, Russian, Chinese, and Italian history, as well as other conquests of the Americas.

To accurately capture the people in his monologues, Mr. Stuart completed intense historical research. Gathering all credible information he could find, Mr. Stuart studied paintings, autopsy reports, and tailors’ records. He once even convinced the Smithsonian to measure the thread count on Abraham Lincoln’s shawl to ensure accuracy.

Armed with that research, Mr. Stuart brought each character to life out of raw materials. Bits of wire, cotton batting, and clay transform into expressive beings. Filling in the unknowns with his artistic imagination, his obsessive attention to the smallest details from eyelashes to fingernails, renders the end product eerily realistic.

In 2019, Mr. Stuart served as NIADA’s guest speaker at our conference in Monterey. In a recent email to Leroy Becker, Director Emeritus, Historical Figures Foundation, I noted: ‘He simply settled into a wingback chair and began sharing photos and anecdotes of his life and his work. An incredible storyteller as well as an extraordinary artist.’

He replied, ‘Yes, his extemporaneous talk at Monterey was from the heart. He truly enjoyed sharing with peers.’

For more information on the work by this exquisite artist:
Visit the Gallery: George C. Stuart of Historical Figures
YouTube: Behind the Curtain: George Stuart Historical Figures