Hot Springs in Garland County, Arkansas — The American South (West South Central)
George Hunt
Artist
| | Hot Springs Arkansas Walk of Fame | |
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, September 14, 2024
1. George Hunt Marker
Nationally known for his contributions to recording The Blues in art Honored with U.S. Postage Stamp and art hanging in the White House Featured artist for blues festivals in Arkansas, Tennessee, Colorado, Louisiana, Mississippi Official Artist for 2003 Year of the Blues established by Congress Paints poster annually for Memphis in May
Hot Springs, Arkansas Inducted 2014
Erected by Hot Springs Arkansas Walk of Fame.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Arts, Letters, Music • Civil Rights. A significant historical year for this entry is 2003.
Location. 34° 30.656′ N, 93° 3.232′ W. Marker is in Hot Springs, Arkansas, in Garland County. It is on Central Avenue (State Highway 7) just north of Spring Street, on the right when traveling north. The marker is embedded in the sidewalk on the north side of the Hot Springs City Visitor Center. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 629 Central Avenue, Hot Springs National Park AR 71901, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Arkansas’ Ouachita Mountains. It is also in the American South and specifically in the Upper South. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture, the Louisiana Purchase, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Carroll Cloar (here, next to this marker); Lon Warneke (here, next to this marker); The Martins (here, next to this marker); Freeman Harrison Owens
this page online
Also see . . .
1. George Hunt (Wikipedia).
Excerpt: George Hunt (July 6, 1933 December 4, 2020) was a Southern American artist, best known for his portraits of Blues musicians and illustrations for Blues Festivals, which ended up in many private collections in addition to galleries, museums, and the walls of Memphis businesses. He was primarily a painter, though he added collage highlights to some of his acrylic paintings that gave a distinctive three dimensionality and texture to the works. For 28 years, Hunt created the official poster for the Memphis in May Beale Street Music Festival. Many people have seen his work or might even own it on a poster or T-shirt without knowing his name. Hunt's work reflected his life experience growing up in the American South, including themes of African American life and the Civil Rights movement.
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, September 13, 2024
2. George Hunt Marker
Looking east from Central Avenue; it is the leftmost of four markers in this photo. The Hot Springs City Visitor Center parking lot is in the background.
2. LEGACY: George Hunt painted to let others see what he saw (Tri-State Defender).
(by Dr. Sybil C. Mitchell) Excerpt: With his later childhood spent in Texas and Hot Springs, Arkansas, Hunt attended the University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff on a football scholarship after high school. He studied art in undergraduate school, continuing post-graduate studies at the University of Memphis and New York University.(Submitted on January 15, 2025, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)For 30 years, Hunt taught art education at George Washington Carver High School in Memphis before plunging into a stellar, full-time painting career.
In 1997, Hunt was commissioned to create an image reflecting the desegregation of Little Rocks Central High School by nine Black students 40 years earlier. Titled America Cares/Little Rock Nine, it later became an image on a U.S. postage stamp issued during the 2005 celebration of diversity series, To Form a More Perfect Nation. The painting hung in the White House during the administration of President Bill Clinton, a former Arkansas governor, who favored the work.
Credits. This page was last revised on January 15, 2025. It was originally submitted on January 14, 2025, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 153 times since then and 6 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on January 15, 2025, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
