Hailed as “one of America’s outstanding figurative sculptors,” work by George Anthonisen deals primarily with the immutable essence of the individual person, the family, and human society in a changing world.  Born in Boston in 1936, Anthonisen spent his early years in Vermont. At the age of 8, Anthonisen was identified as learning disabled and tutored by Elizabeth Clark Gunther, a landscape architect and daughter of the Director of the American Academy in Rome. Her husband, John F. Gunther, was an architect and painter. Anthonisen spent three months, two years in a row, living in the Gunther home, and it was here he was first introduced to the world of art.

In 1955, stationed in Europe with the U.S. Army, Anthonisen visited the Louvre for the first time, where Nike of Samothrace (Winged Victory), Venus de Milo and Michelangelo’s Two Slaves left indelible impressions. After military service, he studied at the University of Vermont. He moved to New York in 1961 to master traditional art skills at the National Academy of Design followed by study at the Art Students League from 1962-1964. He returned to New Hampshire in 1967 to attend Dartmouth College Medical School where he studied human anatomy. This training enabled him to accurately represent the human form in his work.

While his contemporaries were captivated by latest trends in art, Anthonisen personalized modernism and remained true to his ideas. His work has remained timeless for its focus on synthesizing classical forms and compositions with a contemporary approach. In 1971, Anthonisen was named sculptor-in-residence of the Augustus Saint-Gaudens National Historic Site in Cornish, New Hampshire. In the same year, Anthonisen moved to Bucks County, Pennsylvania where he has lived ever since.

His public works in permanent collections are considerably longer than the following:

U. S. Capitol, Capitol Visitors Center (Emancipation Hall), Washington, DC; World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland; New York’s Carnegie Hall (Shorin Club Room); Philadephia’s Please Touch Museum, Woodmere Art Museum and Curtis Institute of Music; James A. Michener Art Museum, Doylestown, Pennsylvania; The Philip & Muriel Berman Museum of Art, Ursinus College, Collegeville Pennsylvania; Clark Atlanta University, Atlanta, Georgia; Center for Interfaith Relations, Louisville, Kentucky; Jackie Robinson Museum, New York, NY and more than two dozen other sites.

In May 2009, Anthonisen received a Doctor of Humane Letters degree from Ursinus College, Collegeville, Pennsylvania. In fall 2006, The Sculpture of George R. Anthonisen, a large survey of Anthonisen’s work, debuted in New Haven, Connecticut at Yale University’s Jonathan Edwards College. In 2013, along with two other judges, the National Endowment for the Humanities invited Anthonisen to judge a national competition for its redesigned medal. From February 28 to June 14, 2015, six Anthonisen bronzes were featured in The Rodin Legacy, James A. Michener Art Museum, Doylestown, Pennsylvania (February 28-June 14, 2015). From September 5 to October 31, 2015, three Anthonisen bronzes were exhibited as part of the celebration of the 50th anniversary of Augustus Saint Gaudens National Historic Site, Cornish, New Hampshire.

Hailed as “one of America’s outstanding figurative sculptors,” work by George Anthonisen deals primarily with the immutable essence of the individual person, the family, and human society in a changing world.  Born in Boston in 1936, Anthonisen spent his early years in Vermont. At the age of 8, Anthonisen was identified as learning disabled and tutored by Elizabeth Clark Gunther, a landscape architect and daughter of the Director of the American Academy in Rome. Her husband, John F. Gunther, was an architect and painter. Anthonisen spent three months, two years in a row, living in the Gunther home, and it was here he was first introduced to the world of art.

In 1955, stationed in Europe with the U.S. Army, Anthonisen visited the Louvre for the first time, where Nike of Samothrace (Winged Victory), Venus de Milo and Michelangelo’s Two Slaves left indelible impressions. After military service, he studied at the University of Vermont. He moved to New York in 1961 to master traditional art skills at the National Academy of Design followed by study at the Art Students League from 1962-1964. He returned to New Hampshire in 1967 to attend Dartmouth College Medical School where he studied human anatomy. This training enabled him to accurately represent the human form in his work.

While his contemporaries were captivated by latest trends in art, Anthonisen personalized modernism and remained true to his ideas. His work has remained timeless for its focus on synthesizing classical forms and compositions with a contemporary approach. In 1971, Anthonisen was named sculptor-in-residence of the Augustus Saint-Gaudens National Historic Site in Cornish, New Hampshire. In the same year, Anthonisen moved to Bucks County, Pennsylvania where he has lived ever since.

His public works in permanent collections are considerably longer than the following:

U. S. Capitol, Capitol Visitors Center (Emancipation Hall), Washington, DC; World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland; New York’s Carnegie Hall (Shorin Club Room); Philadephia’s Please Touch Museum, Woodmere Art Museum and Curtis Institute of Music; James A. Michener Art Museum, Doylestown, Pennsylvania; The Philip & Muriel Berman Museum of Art, Ursinus College, Collegeville Pennsylvania; Clark Atlanta University, Atlanta, Georgia; Center for Interfaith Relations, Louisville, Kentucky; Jackie Robinson Museum, New York, NY and more than two dozen other sites.

In May 2009, Anthonisen received a Doctor of Humane Letters degree from Ursinus College, Collegeville, Pennsylvania. In fall 2006, The Sculpture of George R. Anthonisen, a large survey of Anthonisen’s work, debuted in New Haven, Connecticut at Yale University’s Jonathan Edwards College. In 2013, along with two other judges, the National Endowment for the Humanities invited Anthonisen to judge a national competition for its redesigned medal. From February 28 to June 14, 2015, six Anthonisen bronzes were featured in The Rodin Legacy, James A. Michener Art Museum, Doylestown, Pennsylvania (February 28-June 14, 2015). From September 5 to October 31, 2015, three Anthonisen bronzes were exhibited as part of the celebration of the 50th anniversary of Augustus Saint Gaudens National Historic Site, Cornish, New Hampshire.