George C. Hogg is a name familiar to many of the people of Kimberley, but due to the quality and longevity of his artwork, his name is also known around the world. A new exhibit at Centre 64 will open on October 3 that will commemorate his incredible 60-year career and, at 94 years old, Hogg has no plans of slowing down.
Hogg was born on Dec. 20, 1929 in Kimberley and attended Kimberley High School, where he met Isabel Davidson, who he would go on to marry and raise a family with. He graduated in 1947.
He was a gifted athlete and always had a knack for the arts, which his high school art teacher, Vito Cianci recognized and helped nurture. He went to Hogg's parents, urging them to consider sending George to art school. With his parents' support, Hogg went to the Vancouver school of art in 1947, leaving for a while to work and save money, but returning in 1949.
In 1950 he married Isabel and began a career with Cominco's personnel department. Between work and raising their three children — Janet, David and Gary — Hogg didn't have much time for painting and it wasn't until 13 years later in 1963 that he began actively painting again.
In a recent video put together by his friend Stephen Interisano, Hogg discussed his life in art. He said in the early days he was inspired by the American illustrator and painter Howard Terpning. Born just two years earlier than Hogg, Terpning's influence, particularly in his paintings of Native American life and culture, is indeed evident.
Hogg said Terpning's work initially made him want to become an illustrator, but is glad he didn't go down that road, saying that illustration is a "very, very hard job." However, in school Hogg signed up for some of the courses he needed for illustration to begin with, including anatomy, calling it a "good training process."
"But then, as the first year ended, I thought well do I really want to take up illustration? I thought I’d like to just be freehand and paint," Hogg said.
From there, he said he just fell in love with the scenery of Kimberley and the surrounding area and he soon decided he wanted to include some people in his work as well, so he went down to Fort Steele, where they had started doing early horse farming, and Hogg thought, "Well this is more like it."
Hogg's art captures the beautiful landscapes of the Rocky Mountains and he often interjects his work with portrayals of the way things were many years ago, such as horse-drawn plows or old farm houses.
"I just got to doing the local landscapes, because I fell in love with all the lakes and mountains and I don’t think there’s many that I haven’t been to or haven’t camped at, or fished at, or hunted from," he said. "It’s just grown over the years and it’s hard to look back and say that you’ve been painting for 60-some odd years."
Another prominent feature in his work is the spirit, culture and costumes of Indigenous peoples. Much like his trips to Fort Steele planted seeds that would inform his style for years to come, a camping trip to Kalispell, Mo. would have a profound influence as well: because it was when he and Isabel went to their first pow wow.
"We left the trailer and drove over and we camped on the outskirt of Browning, Mo. and went to the pow wow and I just fell in love with the outfits and then the meeting of people, they were so friendly and they were good to me. They got me interested in the Native people and I got to know a few of them and really enjoyed their conversations.
"I’m still in love with them, I still go to pow wows even though I don’t sketch, but I love the pow wows and the people and meeting the people that I met ten years ago and would become very good friends. And then the Native galleries started picking up my work at Head Smashed in Buffalo Jump and Fort McLeod and Lethbridge."
In 1964 Hogg felt ready to showcase his work and held his first-ever joint show at Union Hall with fellow Kimberley artist Eugene Bidder. He had another in 1965 at the local legion, with his first solo exhibition a year later at Edmonton's Eaton Gallery.
In 1966 an editor from Beautiful BC Magazine came to Hogg's house to photograph his paintings, with "Hoodoo at Dutch Creek" getting published and officially making him a professional artist. That same year his painting of the Bull River entitled "Rocky Mountain Grandeur" won an award representing Canada in the 1970 Calendar of John Laing & Son Ltd. in Great Britain and was distributed worldwide. That painting would then be purchased and brought back to Canada by the Right Honourable James Sinclair, the father of Margaret Trudeau.
As his success as an artist grew, Hogg continued to work at Cominco until his retirement in 1985 at age 55. After he retired he began achieving more and more in the art world, including numerous awards, becoming a member of the Federation of Canadian Artists in 1986 and entering his first International Western Art Show in Ellensburg, Wash.
At that show he won the poster award for his painting "In Competition," which was later selected for the 1989 Ellensburg telephone directory.
Some of his accolades including Best of Show, the Goodey Indian Culture Award, Poster Awards, People's Choice awards and the John Clymer Award. His work has been shown and sold in Germany, the U.K., the U.S., Switzerland and Japan.
Here in Kimberley, many residents will fondly recall his home art shows, which he and Isabel hosted for decades.
Hogg gives credit to Isabel, his high school sweetheart, for the pivotal role she's played in his art career managing the operational side of being a professional artist. She made sure that his work reached the eyes and markets they deserved to reach and managed all the finances to make sure the art business ran smoothly.
At 94, Hogg continues to try to improve at his craft, joining the Friends of Kimberley Art Collective last year. He just recently completed painting number 1856, which is of the Horse Thief area.
"I’m still plugging away at it," he said. "I've done 1856 and that’s far more than I thought I’d be able to do in a lifetime, but I’m hoping still to do a few more paintings before I call it quits."
The work of this legendary Kimberley artist will be on display at Centre 64 from October 3 to November 13 at a gallery entitled "An Artist's Odyssey — 60 Years of Landscapes and Cultural Expression. George and Isabel plan to be there on October 5 from 2 to 4 p.m. to greet you.
