Gonzalez, Amado

Amado Gonzalez (1913-2007) was a muralist and portrait and graphic artist, born in Guadalajara, Mexico, who emigrated to San Francisco in 1927, and studied at the California School of Fine Arts. He was commissioned by California’s Wine Advisory Board in the 1960s to produce a series of colourful advertising posters and maps to promote the state as the "Wine Land of America". At the time, wine was often seen in the United States as a foreign beverage, and Californian wines were still largely considered table wines and inferior to European wines. It wasn’t until 1976 "Judgement of Paris” blind wine tasting event which saw Napa wines beat their French counterparts in the red and white categories that the perception of the California product was dramatically elevated.