Artist and teacher/lecturer using painting, assemblage and ceramics, full name George Ralph Michael Organ, born in Penmaen, Monmouthshire. He was educated at Lewis’ School, Pengam, 1951–6, Peter Evans a notable teacher; worked for the Forestry Commission, 1956–7; did his National Service in the Royal Air Force, 1957–9; attended Caerleon Training College, under Frank Hamer, 1959–61; Cardiff College of Art, taught by Edward Jenkins, 1963–4; and University of Wales, 1971–80, under by Ronald George. After teaching in two secondary modern schools, in 1971 Organ joined the staff of Fairwater Comprehensive School, Cwmbran, retiring in 1990 after 15 years as senior teacher and head of the design faculty. From 1981–92 he was joint course leader for BEd (Art Education), INSET, University of Wales.
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Organ was on the main art committee of the Schools Council of Great Britain and was exhibition officer of the South Wales Potters, being a full member of it and of The Welsh Group. He claimed “three main influences on my work. Firstly, a compulsive curiosity about outsider and folk art, emulated because of their freedom from stylistic convention, direct unrestrained expression, earnestness and imagination. Secondly, the syncretistic grasp of reality demonstrated in the drawings of young children and, thirdly, the view expressed by writers on the psychology of artistic creativity that artistic structure is essentially ‘polyphonic’, in the sense that it evolves from several superimposed strands simultaneously, rather than as a separate line of thought.” As well as participating group shows in Wales and abroad, Organ had solo exhibitions, including a series at Victoria Gallery, Cwmbran, from 1999, and a retrospective at Newport Museum and Art Gallery in 2004. The WAC, University of Southern California, Inner London Education Authority and Brecknock and Tenby Museums and Art Galleries hold examples. Lived in Griffithstown, Gwent.
Text source: 'Artists in Britain Since 1945' by David Buckman (Art Dictionaries Ltd, part of Sansom & Company)
