George Wilson
George Wilson was born in Columbus, Ohio, where he received his early training, including a scholarship to the Columbus School of Design where he took courses during high school. George 
earned his Bachelor and Master's degree in fine art from Ohio State University. In 1939, he attended the renown Chinard private art school in Los Angeles, CA, studying under Millard Sheets. George's Pruett Carter Fellowship with watercolorist Elliot O'Hara was interrupted in 1942 by World War II.
As a Flight Instructor, George flew as a Captain until the war ended in 1945. In 1943, her met and befriended fellow instructor,
Mickey Spillane in Greenwood, Mississippi. This began a sixty year friendship that included working together on such various projects as illustrations of Mike Hammer for Mickey's newest book in 1946, to building Mickey's company, Virginia Homes, in 1952. George and Mickey built a house in Newburgh, NY, where Mickey wrote novels and George was a commercial artist who also made the sets for Hollywood TV shows.Transitioning from the fine arts to commercial art was further enhanced when George attended Pratt Institute where he studied layout, design, architectural rendition, ad arts, techniques, etc. in1947. This was followed by work as one of the first art directors in early television, in Columbus, Ohio, from 1949 -1951. He designed and constructed sets which were theatrical in nature, involving experimental mediums and special effects. Later in 1951, George went to Adak, Alaska, and worked with naval engineers making models for atomic submarines, posters, etc. A year later, he took a train to Mexico City where he lived on the second floor of a hotel, above Frida Kahlo.
In 1955, George once more found himself in Columbus, OR, where he worked the following nineteen years with Gordon Keith in commercial advertising and dimensional work onsets, dioramas, etc. During this time, he also taught fine art and was a member of the Pen and Brush League and the Columbus Artists Association. George also freelanced as a mural artist in private homes.
In 1974, after his move to Granville, NY, George devoted his time exclusively to easel or fine art painting. His studio's location at Hick's Orchard, southeast of the Adirondacks and adjacent to western Vermont, gives him access to superb landscapes. In his fascination with that landscape, he says he "catches the feeling of this country in a given season at a particular time of day." All of George's travels, life experiences (which include two separate years as a back wood logger) have added up to who he is now and how he sees nature in its many moods. He has over 300 paintings in banks, hospitals, the Columbus Gallery of Fine Art, and numerous private collections. Also, regionally, George taught art classes at the Hyde Collection in Glens Falls, NY.
George has been a member of the Chaffee Art Center, Southern Vermont Art Center, and the Guild of Adirondack Artists. Juried group shows in which he received awards include the following: Northwestern Connecticut, Sheffield Art League, Saratoga Casino Show, Southern Adirondack Regional, Chaffee Members Show, Rutland State Fair, Town of Ulster Annual, and the Southern Vermont Art Center Fall Exhibition. He has a two person show in Phoenix, Arizona, a one man show in Glens Falls, NY, and several one man shows at Gallery North Star in VT.