Description:

George Rodrigue
American/Louisiana, 1944-2013
"Stroud's Shady Oaks"
oil on canvas
signed lower right, framed.

Provenance: Acquired from the artist; thence by descent.

George Rodrigue painted portraits throughout his career, beginning in the early 1970s and gaining a national reputation in the 1980s with a presidential portrait commission of Ronald Reagan. Rodrigue's portraits, even as they capture the essence of a particular sitter, retain the enduring qualities of the artist's carefully developed style and visual language that transcend one individual or singular moment in time. Often depicted against the oak trees of Acadiana, his subjects glow against the foliage in the same manner as his Cajuns. Strong shapes, hard edges and a rich palette are common veins running between his portraits. In "Stroud's Shady Oaks" offered here, Rodrigue's inclusion of the wine bottle and steak on the table results in a charming still life vignette which could have come straight from his famous "Aioli Dinner" of 1971, yet also perfectly suits his sitter.

Dwight Stroud was born in Union Church, Mississippi in 1931. He married the love of his life Margaret Bertrand, from Abbeville, Louisiana in 1961, after working on a seismograph crew in the area. In 1963, Stroud bought Shady Oaks Restaurant in Abbeville and began a lifelong career in the restaurant business. Stroud's Shady Oaks was a gathering place and special occasion venue for many. The Abbeville restaurant was a study in contrasts. The walls held collections of fine European Boehm porcelain figurines and Lalique crystal, while ketchup and mustard bottles contained in aluminum pie tins topped the tables. Stroud's wine collection was legendary. Featured in Wine Spectator, he had connections to some of California's finest vintners and imported Premier Cru wines from France. His steaks were hand chosen, seasoned with a secret concoction, then fried in rendered beef fat. Leaving Abbeville in 1988, he opened Stroud's Steakhouse in Lafayette, which closed in 2004. Stroud passed away in 2009.

Rodrigue, who always enjoyed a good meal, was friends with Stroud and regularly frequented the restaurant. This original portrait served as the basis for a poster for the business and was a cherished remembrance of good times between two unique and captivating characters.

Ref.: Tutwiler, Mary. "End of an Era, Dwight Stroud Laid to Rest." The Independent. Oct. 2, 2009.

  • Provenance: Acquired from the artist; thence by descent.
  • Dimensions: 40 x 30 in. (101.6 x 76.2 cm.), Frame: 48 1/4 x 38 1/2 x 1 1/4 in. (122.6 x 97.8 x 3.2 cm.)
  • Medium: oil on canvas
  • Condition: No signs of past restoration; toning of the uneven varnish layer; light surface dirt; 1/8 in. x 1/8 in. area of active flaking and paint loss upper center (top of oak tree); 3/8 in. x 1/8 in. area of active flaking and paint loss lower left (proper right pant leg); very light scattered marks and accretions; very light 2 in. scratch lower right (table leg); very light scattered abrasions and small losses along edges from contact with frame; frame has marks, nicks and abrasions.

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January 24, 2025 11:00 AM CST
New Orleans, LA, US

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