In 2012, the world found out that George W. Bush had decided to become an artist and the world was ... confused? …read my blog to find out about it. drawhoorah.com/blog

Current American President aside, has there ever been a more perplexing leader of the free world other than G.W. Bush? George W. Bush, the 41^st president of the United States of America, was put in place by Big Oil to further their agenda because his brother Jeb just couldn’t win. George W. was cocky and his decisions were impulsive, cruel, over dramatic and maybe not even his own. By the end of his presidency he was dodging protesters and flying shoes. However, George W. did not slip away quietly at the end of his presidency, he shocked everyone by becoming an artist with a very compassionate message.

     George Bush started painting after the end of his second term in 2009. He enjoyed oil painting because he felt it relieved stress and he even hired a teacher to help with his progress. He painted simple subjects like cubes and watermelons, then he moved on to painting his pets and landscapes of his ranch. He started doing portraits of himself and family and eventually other world leaders. He was inspired by Winston Churchill who was also an avid painter and he enjoyed shocking his teacher with his intense focus and quick study.

     “It keeps me active, so I’m not on the couch chewing potato chips all the time,” Bush told “Today” host Matt Lauer. “It’s one of the great learning experiences.”

     Bush actually tried to keep his new found passion a secret but when his sister’s email was hacked, in 2013 some of his paintings were released to the public. By that time Bush was starting to show real promise and skill as a painter and began showing his work on his website and at his presidential library in Dallas. The show was called “Portraits of Courage” and featured 66 beautiful portraits of Military Veterans in uniform. The highly successful show was then made into a book with the same title and included the personal stories of each veteran. The proceeds of the book went on to raise money for the George Bush Institute, a money dispersal think tank for Veterans issues across the U.S.A.

     Bush’s latest project was a collection of portraits of American Immigrants. “Out of Many, One: Portraits of American immigrants”. This project was also very emotional and successful and it followed the same format as the Veterans paintings and was published into a book in 2022.

     It seems that painting may have helped Bush find his own voice in the current political landscape. While still staunchly conservative, he has deeply criticised the insurrection, defended current American institutions, and called for a more rational approach to immigration. He has described the current political atmosphere as a "naked appeal to anger, fear and resentment" and he has even distanced himself from the current The Republican Party. After hearing Donald Trump’s first inauguration speech in 2017, Bush remarked to an aide, “That was some weird s---!”  During the second Inauguration of Trump, Bush was seen rolling his eyes and looking uncomfortable and frustrated, but then he went quiet.

     Bush still has a platform, a website and he still paints. He still has a passion for American Veterans and American values. He created I.C.E during his own administration after 9/11 but has yet to make any comments on its current misuse. George W.’s interesting artistic career made it seem like he was on a path to redemption. Is he? The crickets are getting louder! Speak up George!  Say it or paint it!