Bert L. Long, Jr.

Bert Long Jr. (1940–2013) was a chef, painter, photographer, sculptor, and a founder of Project Row Houses.

Personal life and early career Bert Long Jr., was born in 1940 in Fifth Ward, Houston, Texas.

In 1959, at the age of 19, Long joined the Marines and served until 1964. He attended culinary school in Los Angeles and first worked as an executive chef in a fine-dining chain before opening his own restaurant "Big Bert’s" in Oregon. Afterward, he returned to California to work as executive Sous-chef at the MGM Grand Las Vegas.

Long believed that art could heal the dark side of humanity's soul. In 2006, Surls curated Long's MFAH solo show Out of the life of Burt Long Jr., which featured one of Long's best known painting's Ride the Tiger (2002), in which Long portrays himself riding a tiger naked except for oversized, heavy glasses.

His large, public works include an approximately seven by thirty foot mural at the Looscan Neighborhood Library and a sculptural work called Field Of Visions that was installed on the Project Row Houses campus.

The Bert Long Jr. Papers are located at the University of Houston Special Collections, and Houston Museum of African American Culture (HMAAC) has a gallery dedicated in his name that displays the work of four Houston artists annually. Long's work is held in the collection of The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.