Rendezvous Remembered

Come see artwork created by local artists: This is one of the pieces I will be having on exhibit!

ANNUAL ARTISTS OF THE BLACK HILLS (ABH) ART SHOW & SALE WILL BE HELD AT
THE DAHL ARTS CENTER, 713 7th Street, Rapid City, South Dakota.
Art in an exciting array of mediums, styles and subjects will please the tastes of all manner of art lovers.
The Artists of the Black Hills (ABH) will host it’s Annual Show and Sale at the Dahl Arts Center, 713 7th Street,
Rapid City, SD in the Stan Adelstein & Lynda K. Clark Gallery from May 24, 2013 through June 29, 2013. A
reception is planned for May 31, 2013, 5-7pm.
Daily exhibition hours are Monday – Saturday from 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM.
The Show and Sale will feature the newest work of 32 of this region’s finest artists, all signature members
of the Artists of the Black Hills professional organization.These artists are at the forefront of fostering the
growth of the visual arts in the Black Hills region and they each excel in their chosen medium. It is always
exciting to see the new work each artist has created in preparation for this show. Whether you live in the
Black Hills or are a visitor to this area, it’s a great event and a wonderful way to spend a day out.
“This year’s Annual show will be exceptional and showdcase 32 of our region’s finest artists displaying their
newest work. We are excited to be showing at the Dahl this year and for the next several years!”, notes ABH
founding member Mick B. Harrison. The opening night (Friday, May 31, 2013 from 5 pm to 7 pm) festivities will
once again feature not only great art but the exqisite catering of Catered Two .
ABH is an organization of professional artists and galleries with the common goal of establishing the Black
Hills as an art destination. To learn more about ABH artists go to the ABH website at
www.artistsoftheblackhills.org. or see us on Facebook.

14 x 18” Oil on Clayboard

This is a painterly interpretation of the textures found at the rendezvous: leather, beads, quillwork, and beadwork… all interwoven into the fabric which was the Rendezvous trade.

This painting is more loosely painted: letting the leather fringe and beads fuse together with small patches of seed bead patterns and quill work.  All combine to convey the textures and patterns of early American trade between cultures.    

36 x 48” Oil on Canvas

Visits to modern day rendezvous have been an intriguing glimpse into what life was like for early trapper/trader and Native American gatherings.  During the inception of this trade, items from each culture were highly desirable by the other, and not only goods, but culture was exchanged at the rendezvous.  Rendezvous means “coming together” and until the trade became strained, it was a time of wonderful sharing of trades, stories and survival skills.  All threads of the America we have created today.  This painting incorporates a symbol characteristic of my work: a rend in the canvas.  Symbolic of breakdown over time, this painting shows lucrative trade, but the strain destined to destroy it.  

I just returned from showing this painting along with many others at Western Art Week in Great Falls, MT.  This painting was a hit with the people who came into my display room to see what “Art of the Rendezvous” was all about.

12 x 36”” Oil on Canvas

For a short period of time, the barter system set up by trapper/traders and Native Americans were initially mutually beneficial.  

Then, like most business deals, things changed…  

The barter was broken, as were promises.

I have been doing paintings of trade beads for many years, and have been re-visiting the subject matter.  Beautiful old glass trade beads and  ancient clay  beads continue to call to me and ask to be interpreted.

24 x 36” Watercolor on Clayboard

In reference to early trade goods and their use as currency in the beaver pelt trade.  Magic to the touch, and glowing in the sunlight, trade beads such as these changed the world.

The ancient Egyptians made beads, and then the secrets to the process of creating glass beads was lost to time.  The Venetians, famed with their glass-blowing skills yet today,  eventually were able to duplicate the process, and this became a well guarded secret for generations.  It was indeed a very powerful currency, until eventually the trade secrets were leaked, and beads were made world-wide.  Still, a very material and time demanding process, what is viewed as a trifle with today’s technology, remained a very valuable form of currency as mankind spread around the globe.

This detailed and large-scale painting of vintage trade beads is framed in an antiqued gold deep frame, which accentuates the gem-like quality of the beads. To do paintings of trade beads has become a passion and one that I will continue to explore.

11 x 14” Watercolor on Clayboard

My fascination with trade beads began with a visit to a rendezvous.  The modern day rendezvous is a reenactment of the early days of westward expansion in which trapper/traders and Native Americans traded goods and culture.  In the initial stages, the trade was driven by luxury goods: beaver pelts for beads and metal goods.  The objects of the trade were the currency.  Beaver pelts and beads were major currency at one time.  Those two items, ironically, were largely luxury goods: making westward expansion and trade a fashion-driven enterprise!

11 x 14” Watercolor on Clayboard

A hank is a string of beads.  Seeing beautiful hanks of glass trade beads, with sunlight shining through them is every bit as compelling to me as a gold brick.  Trade beads were popular currency in early western expansion, and are still sought after today.

My trade bead paintings are displayed in Rapid City , SD at Prairie Edge Gallery.  The facility;  is not only a gallery, it also is a store, selling beautiful  and unique items.   If you get there, don’t miss the outstanding collection of trade beads that is on display: truly amazing in how it is presented.  It is truly a bead library.  Beads of all shapes and colors are on display in lit glass cabinets.  The store also has a large collection of beads for sale.  Truly something to take in when you are in the Black Hills.  

12 x 36” Watercolor on Clayboard

The Hudson Bay traders brought items of great beauty to trade with Native Americans as they made their way west.  As cultures learned from one another, a thread was created, which led to an inevitable intertwining of ideas and future.  Ah, trade beads have gotten me thinking.

As world resources become increasingly scarce, it seems inevitable that mankind will have conflict.  Our interdependence on one another  is a concern, but perhaps could very well be what saves us… what are your thoughts?  I’d love to open up some dialogue on this issue.

12 x 36” Watercolor on Clayboard

This profusion of glass trade beads is not only pleasing to look at, but intriguing to contemplate.  Mankind has always bartered; as one area of the world had different resources and technologies that the other wanted.  Such was so with the early trading of goods in American westward expansion. 

The trade and inevitable merging of cultures has entwined and influenced the current culture of America.  

I’ve upped my game: this one is long and vertical: very fun and echoes the fall of the beads as they are hung on display at a rendezvous.  Glass trade beads: symbolic of the complex nature of economic and personal exchange.. 

http://www.countryregister.com/publishers/publishersites/nsdakota/documents/CRNRGPJanFeb2013ISSUE_WEB.pdf