Anthony Benton Gude was born in June of 1963 at what was then known as the Oak Bluffs Hospital. He was only the latest arrival in a family whose connections with the Vineyard date back to the early 20th century. His mother and father first met here. Before that, there were his grandparents, Rita and Thomas Hart Benton (yes, the legendary American artist) who started making the Island their summer getaway back in the 1920's.
"My childhood was spent playing on the beaches and fishing off the docks in Menemsha," says Anthony, "as well as watching my grandfather paint in his studio. Drawing and painting was a part of growing up. When I reached college age, it was only natural I chose an art school."
After studying at the Museum School of Fine Art in Boston (where he mastered the Venetian technique of oil painting) and then the Art Students' League in New York City, Anthony embarked on his own career in art, starting as a muralist in the Midwest. Even during that time, however, he never missed a summer on Martha's Vineyard. Finally, when it came time to raise his children, his family made the Island their permanent home.
Anthony Benton Gude paints Martha's Vineyard and also maintains a presence in Kansas and Missouri as a landscape painter and muralist.