Biography

Born in Uruguay of Greek parents, Kanelous came to the United States at age 3. He attended New Utrecht High School in Brooklyn, where he was a pole vaulter on the track team. He studied at the Art Students League under Utagawa Kuniyoshi and worked with muralist James Daugherty. He received employment under the New Deal and produced posters for the war effort before settling into a career as a very successful commercial artist, continuing to paint on the side.

Critical Analysis

Examples of Kanelous's art are easy to find. His images range from children's books and luscious fruits in food advertisements to tough guys on the covers of men's magazine, with sultry blondes from pulp magazines somewhere in-between. He received a mural commission for Baldwin Senior High School (Nassau County, New York) in 1959. His paintings from the 1960s and 1970s were shown at the Phoenix Gallery in New York to general acclaim.

Murals

• Norwich, Connecticut - Post Office: Taking Up Arms - 1776
• East Walpole, Massachusetts - Post Office: Early Paper Making
• Baldwin, New York - Baldwin High School: (student activities)

References

1. George Kanelous (Connecticut Creative Places).
2. George Kanelous (askART).
3. Vivian F. Zoë, Milton Bellin and the Federal Arts Project, The Muse Fall (2012).
4. Adrienne Lyons, Morass Over Mural, LI Herald December 17 (2015).
5. Preserving a BHS Treasure, The Leader September 6 (2001).