Elon University awarded the Medal for Entrepreneurial Leadership to Guy Harvey in a packed LaRose Digital Theatre Monday night. Harvey — a renowned marine life artist and scientist and conservationist briefly summarized his near 30-year history as proprietor of Guy Harvey, Inc. and how he quickly discovered the value of wildlife conservation.
“I learned early on conservation is good for business,” Harvey said.
Although he has long been committed to marine life conservation, it wasn’t until 2008 that Harvey established the now-thriving Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation. The foundation funds scientific research and educational programs to ensure a mutually beneficial future for marine life and their ecosystems.
“As the population grows, [society] places more and more pressure on limited resources,” Harvey said.
Most recently, Harvey partnered with Richard Branson and his company Virgin Group in the effort to conserve the world’s oceans and marine life.
The Entrepreneurial Leadership award, of which Harvey is the sixth recipient, honors industry leaders who exemplify Elon’s values of integrity, innovation and creativity, passion for lifelong learning and a commitment to building a dynamic community. Elon chose Harvey to receive this award because of his unique blend of expertise in the fields of entrepreneurship, science and art, said President Leo Lambert, who presented him with the medal.
“I really don’t deserve this,” Harvey said upon receiving the award. “I really have a team of people who help me do this.”
Harvey first signed commercial licensing for his artwork in 1986 in Florida when he was still teaching at a university in the West Indies. It was then, he said, that he first learned the importance of copyrighting his work. From there, Harvey spent his time at trade shows and consumer shows trying to gain momentum for his artwork and ideas.
In 1999, in partnership with the Oceanographic Center at Nova Southeastern University, Harvey launched the Guy Harvey Research Institute (GHRI) to research deeper into the world’s marine life and their ecosystems. The institute, he said, acts as a strong liaison for collaborating with universities in marine life education and has produced 80 peer-reviewed papers to date.
An eleventh generation Jamaican, Harvey said he draws inspiration for his artwork from his roots in the Caribbean. The island of Panama is an optimum setting for Harvey, he said. It’s here — where the fishing is consistent and the film opportunities are plenty — that he is able to find inspiration.
“The bigger animals are the ones I really love to paint,” Harvey said.
He has experience with pen and ink, watercolor, acrylic and oil painting as well as underwater photography and cinematography.
Still, Harvey credits much of his recent success to his social media team.
“It’s good to remain highly visible on the road all the time... Social media has become a very important medium,” said Harvey, who has over 760,000 likes on his Facebook page. In addition, Harvey’s team compiles and publishes a quarterly print magazine that features visually rich photography and artwork, he said.
Ultimately, Harvey said he would like to bring attention to marine life.
“Wildlife artists are kind of considered the red-headed stepchild of the artist community,” Harvey said.
But, he advised aspiring artists to make use of modern social media tools to promote their artwork.