The Walter Anderson Museum of Art is pleased to present The Bayou Collection by George Rodrigue, a remarkable exhibition of paintings by Louisiana artist George Rodrigue (1944–2013), on view from Aug. 10 through Jan. 9. Organized by the LSU Museum of Art in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, this exhibition showcases the complete Bayou Collection, offering audiences an in-depth look at one of George Rodrigue’s most pivotal bodies of work. 

Created between 1981 and 1984, The Bayou Collection features forty original paintings inspired by Cajun folklore and ghost stories, produced to accompany author Chris Segura’s book Bayou (Inkwell Press, 1984). The works capture Louisiana’s mysterious swamps, haunting legends, and enduring cultural spirit through Rodrigue’s vivid imagination and mastery of storytelling. 

Among these paintings is Watch Dog, one of Rodrigue’s most transformative works and the quiet beginning of what would become his world-famous Blue Dog series. The composition—originally illustrating the ghost story Slaughter House—features a spectral canine inspired by Rodrigue’s late dog Tiffany and the loup-garou, the shape-shifting werewolf of Cajun legend. 

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