George H. Lewis
| George H. Lewis | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | London, England |
| Occupation | Speaker, photographer, artist, painter |
| Nationality | British |
George H. Lewis is an internationally acclaimed British artist, painter, photographer and speaker known for his exhibits over wide areas of the UK, Europe, the US and the Middle East. His art is featured among the collections of the Sultan of Oman; Robert Holmes Tuttle, US Ambassador to the United Kingdom; Prince Hassan of Jordan, and the Maharaja of Jodhpur in India. His work is also found in the inventories of the legendary designer Valentino, the English National Ballet, the Duchess of Cornwall, the Royal Bank of Scotland, the World Trade Organization, the Asia Society in New York, and many of the world's cultural leaders and organizations.
An inveterate world traveler and lecturer, he has lived throughout the Middle East, including Oman, Kuwait, and the UAE, notably among the Al Rashedi tribe in the Empty Quarter, the largest sand desert in the world. Currently residing in New York City, the focus of his work rests on themes of interfaith and intercultural subjects that explore the quality of empathy.
Early life
George Lewis was raised and educated in the UK, where he attended Radley College in Oxford and later Reading University, majoring in international politics. His subsequent studies brought him to Italy, where he enrolled in Padua University. The diversity of his interests in politics, history and culture prompted him to dedicate himself to a career in art to express his concerns, thus offering him the opportunity to trigger deeper insight and implement change in the global perspective.
Artistic career
Lewis was brought to Oman by one of his collectors, Brigadier Timothy Landon, where he was offered the position of artist-in-residence under the auspices of Sheikh Ahmed Farid al Alaqui. He was then commissioned by the Sultan of Oman to paint for the royal court. While traveling the vast regions of the Middle East from 2007 to 2011, Lewis portrayed the essence of the great contrasts between urban and rural social environments and cultural landscapes through his pictorial essays, using the mediums of painting and photography.
George Lewis has a wide collector base across Europe, the US and the Middle East where his works are included in many royal and private collections. His works hang in acclaimed galleries and venues ranging from Doha to London, Muscat to New York and Abu Dhabi to Florida. In 2011, 2012 and 2013, the Minister of Culture of the UAE, Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, hosted a number of exhibitions of Lewis' work in Abu Dhabi. In 2010 one of his paintings was sold at the prestigious auction house of Sotheby's at their Islamic exhibition in Doha, Qatar.
Lewis has been commissioned to paint the portraits of many international luminaries and heads of state, including former President Olusegun Obesanjo of Nigeria; Pippa Middleton; Sir Colin Davis; actress, Tea Leoni and former Prime Minister of Australia, Kevin Rudd.
George Lewis seeks to cultivate a culture of empathy and understanding of diverse cultures on a global scale. The constant thread that unites his artwork, speaking engagements, tutorials and consulting projects is to challenge the entrenched perception of conflict being the prime directive in the relationship between cultures, values and ideals. Recent highlights in his intensive schedule of speaking engagements include The Enlightenment Society UNSRC at the United Nations, Harvard College, the Kennedy School, CUNY in New York and an ongoing schedule of international cybercasts, radio, and television interviews.
His works can be viewed online.
The Salon Project
Inspired by the pursuit of enlightenment found in the French Salons of the 17th and 18th centuries, George H. Lewis created The Salon Project in New York in July 2014. In a time where conflict and fear seem to be the pervading atmosphere conspiring to keep the world divided, the current global culture has turned against the inclusivity and trust that is so vital to the concept of community Dedicated to establishing a safe collaborative space for the exchange of ideas, values and aesthetics, The Salon Society is designed to promote a format to promote a sense of interconnectivity among the multifaceted cultures that make up the global community.
Artistic Philosophy
With the Salon Project at the vanguard of all of his work, George H. Lewis seeks to lead towards deeper insights concerning the authentic nature of mankind's global community. His goal is to illustrate that we are far more similar than we are different. His personal mission is to awaken the concepts, within our individual and collective lives, of empathy and mutual respect of the unfamiliar. He strives through his profession to promote the realization that if we can change ourselves as individuals, we can change the world.