CityView Magazine

Because he likes his subjects to appear as they would in a photograph, he brings a small camera with him wherever he goes. But he was perhaps just as well known for his love of the Cape Fear River and the fishing shop and amphitheater he built there. Today, the Sol Rose Amphitheater is a draw for concerts and plays, most notably the annual River Show produced by the Cape Fear Regional Theater every spring. Sol Rose died in 2007 but he passed on both a passion for the outdoors and his profession to George, one of his three sons. After college, George Rose landed jobs at civil engineering consulting firms in Raleigh and Chapel Hill. He moved back 28 | Aug/Sept • 2010 to Fayetteville in 1983, and spent the next five years working for his father again. In 1988, he ventured out on his own, starting George Rose Builder, Inc. His successful business continues to focus on real estate development, including residential and commercial design and construction. Because of his background, Rose prefers working on his art at a drafting table instead of an easel. In terms of subject matter, Rose said he doesn’t focus on anything in particular. “I have done a number of flowers, and scenes with fruit and leaves,” he said. “Structures and architectural details interest me. I like the view of something up close.” People interest him, too. In his pieces, subjects have included family members, friends of the family, and people who worked for either him or his father. Sometimes Rose will just draw something that catches his eye. Because he likes his subjects to appear as they would in a photograph, he brings a small camera with him wherever he goes. Working from a photograph allows him to draw real objects with a great deal of detail.

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