Tale of Conflict

Native American Battle“Tale of Conflict” 8 x 10” Oil on Panel

A simplified version of another of my paintings, this image focuses in on the individual conflict between two warriors.   The imagery of a U. S. Calvary soldier being pursued by a Native American, both on horseback, is inspired by the Ewers Ledger.  The original artist of the ledger was a Northern Cheyenne, incarcerated in a fort in Montana Circa 1870 – 1880.  The Ewers Ledger is named after the Calvary officer whose descendants inherited it.

None of us lives in the world of our ancestors.  It is non-the-less important to recognize the lives they lived, the sacrifices they made, the pain and conflicts they suffered.  That is a life lived, and worthy of notice, as it has in some way impacted the present in which we live.


Tales Lost to Time

Indian War Bonnet“Tales Lost to Time” 12 x 36” Oil on Canvas

A photo: a blast from the past, just came out from my cousin, on Facebook, and took us all back to “the day”… Here, my cousins, my brother and my aunt and I are all at my grandparent’s home, posing together.  (We are in Grandma’s corner: where her chair sat)  We are of different ages, yet share many common bonds.   Each of us has a truth and a story at the time the photo was taken… a shared experience, yet totally different experiences non-the-less.  As photos from my youth are fading away, it reminds me of the fact that these memories… these stories… these personal truths… will also be largely lost to time.

I am inspired by mysterious rock carvings; their meaning lost to time.  Although the imagery is clear, the meaning is not.  What is left for the modern viewer is to not just view these symbols, but to decipher them by feeling them with their heart.  Intuitively, perhaps the meaning is still translatable to mankind.  “I LIVED, I WAS HERE”  Tales told through images, and largely conveyed narrativly, the story is lost to time, but the memory of the human having lived is still present.

A feathered headdress such as this, also tells a story.  Each feather represents a deed or event.  Now encased in a museum, the piece still communicates a message and preserves a culture, but sadly, the rich tales that once accompanied the artifact are now lost to time.

Terms of Surrender

Calvary meeting with Native Americans“Terms of Surrender” 9 x 12” Oil on Panel

The imagery inside this tipi narrative are inspired by images drawn by a Cheyenne named Making Medicine.  It is showing a meeting between Native American Indians and U. S. Calvary.  Making Medicine created a book of sketches at Fort Marion, St. Augustine, Florida, ca. 1875 – 1878.

It is a painting about the end of a way of life… the surrender of this life as well as how it was lived.

This is a strong painting, small in size but big in content.  It is my goal as an artist to do more than merely create an image.  I am striving to make a statement that nobody else is making, in my unique way.  When my time on this earth is over, I pray I leave a body of work which is like none before me… and in the world of art, that is hard!  There are plenty of landscapes and still life paintings on this planet;  I am hoping my legacy will tell a historical tale and leave a social commentary of life on this earth.

Artist Exchange Wraps Up

Chuck Wagon Ride

We began our trip to the Southern Hills with a meet and greet event at the Prairie Berry Winery in Hill City.  Shirley Jane Hobbs joined us for a lovely luncheon and discussion about artist exchanges and we explored ideas about how one could be managed in the Black Hills again.  I am the featured artist at the winery for the month of October, and the group was able to see my exhibit, which made me happy.  More about my show and the events surrounding it, in future posts.

Here you see a happy group:  we were loaded up on a hay wagon, with a top like a covered wagon. This chuck wagon feed is arranged through The Blue Bell Lodge, close to where we stayed for two nights in Custer State Park.   Adorned in hats with Custer State Park bandannas,  we rode out to a supper site, singing all the way.  Our host, Cowboy Keith, played an assortment of western songs, and welcomed requests.  He said he could play anything, but sometimes it all sounded like “Home on the Range”… he did that once when he didn’t know the song.  Pretty funny.  On the way back it got pretty chilly, so a couple verses of “Jingle Bells” seemed appropriate! We met couples from across the US, and proudly added the international flavor to the night.

Chuck Wagon Feed

We had a beautiful ride out, seeing deer and antelope along the way (As in the song “Home on the Range”, they were playing, I think…  )  We didn’t see any buffalo (or the proper name for them is bison), but that wasn’t a great surprise, as in two day’s time, they were to be stampeded at the Buffalo Round-up, so were largely already rounded up for that event)  The food was excellent:  we all chose steak, and each of us raved about how tender it was.  We also had customary baked beans, coleslaw, potato salad, corn bread and watermelon.    Cowboy Keith entertained us through the meal, and a few willing participants danced… we started with “The Hokey Poky” and ended with “The Chicken Dance”.  No, alcohol was not involved, and yes, unfortunately, Yves has video evidence to be used against us at a later date…

Legion Lake

We stayed at The Legion Lake Lodge, in charming little cabins.  My guests exclaimed how like their vision of an American summer camp this was!  The lake is rimmed by this beautiful rock wall, with a reflection at the base. I did a small watercolor of it, sitting on a sunny deck overlooking the lake.  We enjoyed our cabins, and even had two nights of campfires and Prairie Berry wine.  Our first night we had a smoky fire, not really able to get it flaming…and then Cowboy Dave purchased some magic lighter fluid for the second night, and we were much happier.  My good friend, Anna Huntington, joined us, and brought the makings for “smores”  This is a typical campfire treat (usually for kids) in which a melted marshmallow is sandwiched between a Hershey bar and graham cracker.  (Note: smores do not compliment any of the wine we selected at Prairie Berry…)

Home of poet Badger Clark

We had beautiful weather the entire weekend:  such a gift, and we grabbed it!  Stopping at a quaint log home, built by South Dakota poet in residence, Badger Clark, we were disappointed to find it closed, but were able to peek through the windows to see inside.  Badger Clark was a cowboy poet, who built this cabin (Called the Badger Hole)  in what is now Custer State Park.  His belongings are all there just as he left them, so it is an intriguing glimpse at his life and source of some of his creativity. Millie shared that Badger Clark spoke at her 8th grade graduation!  Once we left this cabin, we took in an arts festival which is in conjunction with the Custer Roundup, purchasing a few items, but having found we had our shopping needs met the previous day in the quaint little town of Hill City.

Hoop Dancing lessons

Summer White House to Calvin Coolidge

At the Custer Arts Festival, there were different music and dance events.  Pictured is a Native American girl, teaching some crowd volunteers the intricacies of the traditional Hoop Dance.  The Custer State Park Game Lodge was home to President Calvin Coolidge in 1927, and is a stately arts and crafts inspired building yet today.

Mount Rushmore as seen through tunnel

Needles Highway

The Eye of the Needle

We took a beautiful drive along Iron Mountain Highway and The Needles Highway.  The original approach to Mount Rushmore was blasted out of the mountains, with several strategically placed tunnels which were designed to frame the monument.  I’ve always wanted to take a photo of this!  The Needles are the remains of a volcanic formation.  These rock spires rise up impressively, and we all took many photos, as the light was strikingly perfect at the time of day in which we visited them.  At the inner sanctum of the formation is this most amazing form:  called The Eye of the Needle, for obvious reasons!

Moving the Bison

We had to get up early to get a strategic place in line to see the impressive Buffalo Stampede, an annual event by Custer State Park, in which their Bison herd are rounded up, brought into corrals, inoculated, sorted, calves branded, and some sold off, to keep the herd manageable in the park.  Cowboys and cowgirls came with their horses and pickups to bring in the herd.  Thousands of viewers such as ourselves were positioned well out of harms way, and were able to witness a most spectacular event.  Seeing the massive herd moving across the prairie was a way in which to witness days gone by, as well as the modern era of land management in the park.

Carrying the American Flag

The conclusion of the round-up was a ceremonial presentation of the American Flag.  The crowd cheered, and it was a most fitting end to the round-up.  It also signaled the end of our artist exchange.  Judy and Bill Hobbs once again hosted our group: kindly having a delicious supper waiting for us upon our return from the round-up.  Tired though we were, we had a great time, recalling our many adventures, and had a good laugh at the 1950’s version of Calamity Jane.  We watched highlights from the movie “Calamity Jane” with Doris Day, in both English and in French… again symbolic of our cultural exchange.

Today, our guests returned home.  The hosts, Millie Halsey, Judy and Bill Hobbs, and my family, will miss the laughter and daily lessons such an exchange brought into our lives.  Our homes and hearts will feel empty without our good friends here with us, but we look forward to the time when we can possibly travel to their equally unique places on this earth, and continue our learning!

Home on the Range

Old Blacksmith building

Today we took the group to the Dutton ranch, outside of Faith, SD.  It is near Mud Butte and Zeona, if that helps any… HA  Both need a detailed map to find them listed.  We also visited Dave’s sister Linda Anders and Dennis Hathaway on the Hathaway ranch.

Pictured is a photo of an old homesteader cabin, off of a neighboring ranch.  It was the site of a murder, in which a girl’s father didn’t approve of a suitor, and the suitor lost, as the story goes.   When it was no longer in use, Dave’s grandfather, Hiram Dutton, numbered the logs, disassembled them, and re-assembled them on the ranch.  Hiram & Mary Dutton homesteaded this ranch in 1914, and it has been in Dutton ownership ever since.  The log building was used as a blacksmith shop on the ranch.

It was the setting for some fun today!

Dave and Bonnie

Calamity Jane Carter

Calamity Jane Clargo

Mariethe' and Yves Salort

Old time Millie

We dressed up in some authentic western gear, (with real weapons!) and had some fun.   Some of the group painted while the others looked over the ranch and hunted petrified wood in the river.  (Which they found plenty)  Millie found what appears to be a petrified vertebrae, possibly from a dinosaur.  We are going to have it checked out by an expert.

I may possibly be off line for a couple of days with the events of our travels.  We will be venturing in to the southern Black Hills, and I am unsure if I will be able to get wireless Internet.  If I can’t keep the blog updated, I will definitely do a catch up once I am able!

Dinosaur Bones in the ground

We saw documented dinosaur bones, at an official site.  On private land, we were able to look over bones which are still in the ground, yet exposed, in the process of excavation.

We visited the Hathaway ranch, and had a wonderful lunch with Dennis and Linda.  We also got to experience their magnificent fishing hole…. a stock dam, which is filled with eager Bass, just waiting for you to throw in a line!  Here you see Jane Clargo getting a casting lesson from Dennis.

Casting lesson

The end of a great day

A Rainy Day

Today we woke to rain… with the forecast of more rain!  The schedule had a “flex day” built in, so this was it!  I went to The Prairie Berry Winery in  Hill City to hang an up-coming exhibition, so it will be up when we go there on Saturday for our meet and greet event (noon, for anyone planning to join us!)  The winery is a thriving place, and on a rainy day, seemed the perfect place to quite a few people, from the looks of it!  I will be the featured artist there through October.

http://www.prairieberry.com/events/?showevent=b5a5e414e18dee432e9c3ea231328bc7

While I was hanging my exhibit, my guests were having a most interesting day… visiting the shopping mecca of WalMart was of interest, and then something very few visitors get to do:  they went to a sale barn and witnessed a cattle auction!  Bill Hobbs is a cattle buyer in the area, purchasing cattle for various clients.  His wife, Judy, took the group to see how it is done.  Now, THAT is an authentic western experience!

Dick Termes

We visited Dick Termes and Markie Scholz at the Termesphere Gallery.

Dick is a well know artist, locally, nationally, and internationally.  He paints spheres:  being a master of 6 point perspective, and his paintings are on spheres of all sizes.  These beautiful artworks are known as Termespheres.   He also paints on a variety of complex 3-d shapes, and of course, on canvas as well.  His work is M. C. Escher-like, in that the more you look, the more you see, and optical illusion takes place, as his paintings are not only intriguing, but they spin as well, adding a variety of other amazing effects.

Check out his website: http://termespheres.com/

Markie Scholz

Markie is a professional puppeteer, and treated us to a sampling of her characters and how she presents them.  Markie’s website is a fun collection of what she does, and her business is called: Dragons are too Seldom.  (As she said, “They really are!”)    http://dragonsaretooseldom.com/

We finished the day at a delightful meal at Stanford’s.  This is a popular local restaurant, in which the decor is based on a popular T.V. show by the same name, about a junk dealer and his son.  The restaurant is filled with “Americana”  tacked on the wall in every corner – including the ceiling.  Yves Salort was taking a lot of photos there… I would LOVE to see this place through his eyes!

The Black Hills Pioneer had a really nice article about our exchange, and mentioned the blogs Janet Weight Reed and I are writing… so it is now about you, too!

http://www.bhpioneer.com/articles/2010/09/23/news/northern_hills/doc4c9b8819d9857315827921.txt

A Day in Wyoming

Aladdin Wyoming Store

As I am nearly beat tonight, a picture is worth a thousand words will have to suffice!  We went to the thriving town of Aladdin, WY (Population 15) in which there is an amazing country story: the Aladdin General Store.  It is pretty much as it has been for the past100 years!  They sell general merchandise as well as souvenirs and antiques… you can get a mixed drink and your smokes here, too.

Coal Mine

This is the Aladdin Tipper mine, a coal mine that’s remains are still intact today.  I saw many mines like this still standing when I was a child, but most are now lost to time.

And then there was Devil’s Tower… looming from the distance.  It was shrouded in haze initially, and we had a beautiful day; overcast, but perfect for the walk that Millie and Jane Clargo took around the base, and that Mariethe’, Jane Carter and I painted, and that Yves photographed!  We had a lovely visit with Dorothy Fire Cloud, Superintendent of Devil’s Tower, whom we had met the previous weekend at the Thin Milk Ride.  During that time, she was awarded a very special necklace, based on the sculpture that has been installed at the monument: it is a symbol of peace, the white symbolizing a ring of smoke, and the sacredness of the site. See a 2008 news article about it:

http://www.rapidcityjournal.com/news/local/article_a278b375-9210-5d10-81c5-88b6b4b4c6aa.html

We finished off the day with a lovely meal hosted by Ken and Erin Halsey, my father and step-mother.  Thank you!!!

Devil's Tower from a distance

Devil's Tower National Park

By Junku Muto

Mount Rushmore and Rapid City

Paper Sculpture and Group

Rendezvous series

Paintings by Bonnie Halsey-Dutton

We began our day exploring Prairie Edge Gallery in Rapid City.  This is the gallery which represents my art.  The group is posing in front of an amazing sculpture, made from paper.  It is the art of Patty and Allen Eckman.  The complexity of the texture and detail makes it most unusual.

Pictured here are four of my paintings, rendered in watercolor and gouache on paper.  I was introduced to the framing method on a trip to London!  This is representative of the art I exhibited at London’s Brick Lane Gallery this past May.

We had a delicious meal at the Firehouse Restaurant.  We each ate Buffalo Burgers! (and now we know they should have been called Bison Burgers!)

The Prairie is my Garden

We were treated to a tour of Rapid City’s Dahl Fine Arts Center, in which there was an exhibit by Harvey Dunn.  He is a famous artist and illustrator from South Dakota, who painted in an impressionistic style.  This piece is from the permanent collection at The South Dakota Art Museum in Brookings.  Although we didn’t see this painting, it is representative of his regional subject matter and style.  (and I am too wore out to hunt up one which we actually saw!) There were also impressive exhibits by Darrel Nelson and Katheryn Myers.

We ended our day with a very nice trip up to Mount Rushmore.  The magnitude of the sculpture and wonder at how it was made continues to impact me: no matter how many times I may visit. It makes me proud to show my guests this impressive sign of American pride.  Tomorrow to Wyoming and Devil’s Tower!

Mount Rushmore prior to carving

Mount Rushmore

We ended the evening at The Loud American Roadhouse in Sturgis.  Sturgis, of Harley Davidson and the Sturgis motorcycle rally… and a restaurant famous for its “legendary steak tips”… and they were good!

Supper at The Loud American Roadhouse

Day Six of the Artist Exchange

Sculpture of Buffalo Hunt

Today we went to Kevin Costner’s interpretive center near Deadwood, called Tatanka.  Tatanka is Lakota for Bison.  This site has a intriguing meld of the history of the bison, and homage to the Native American way of life.  In an introductory film of Costner’s dedication speech, he summed it up for me: the history of the Black Hills is one that began long before Hickok.  It is a story of wonder and regret.

The sculpture pictured here is done at 25% larger than life size, and shows three mounted riders, driving a herd of Bison over a cliff, such as that which we visited the first day, at the Vore Buffalo Jump.  We learned through an interpretive talk that the proper name for the beast is Bison, not the commonly used Buffalo.  Either is acceptable, but if you want to be correct, it is Bison!

Interpreter at Tatanka

The experience was enhanced by an interpreter, who was very knowledgeable in the history of her people, and in the history of the bison.  We learned about many misconceptions, and it was clarified as to different tribes of the Sioux tribe, and that the name Sioux was a misunderstanding as to what the tribal name really was.  Once given a name, it stuck.  I’m imagining many a “Shorty” out there can attest!

The day was beautiful.  We were able to see inside the tipi pictured.  It was from the set of “Dances with Wolves”, Kevin Costner’s movie which helped to educate the world as to the Native American way of life, and to realize what was lost.  At the center were some of the costumes from the movie, all very well constructed and authentic.

The magnitude of the slaughter of the bison is evidenced in the photo below.  That man is standing on a stack of bison bones!  What was once so plentiful and life-giving, was reduced to a pile of bones, ground into pulp.  There are resources today which mankind is treating with equal disregard, sadly.

Stack of Bison Bones

We had a quick visit to Ken and Erin Halsey’s Geodesic Dome house and rides in his antique automobile, adding a totally different twist to the day.

The Meet and Greet

Creative discussion

Finally, we enjoyed the chance to meet local artists and persons interested in the arts, at the Spearfish Arts Center, at Matthews Opera House.  Funds for the event were provided by the South Dakota Arts Council, giving all the chance to have a nice meal together.

Enjoying a meal

Getting Interviewed

Having guests as our catalyst, we had an informal gathering in which locals were able to meet not only the visitors, but one another as well!  Thank you all who were able to attend:  I believe all benefited from the experience of being around the creative energy that inevitably results from interesting people gathering!

The Thin Milk Ride

The Thin Milk Ride

Memorial Sign

The Thin Milk Ride was a very special event which our group was invited to attend.  It is hosted by the Swallow and Two Bulls families, on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, and we were invited by Sandy Swallow Morgan.  Sandy and her husband Wayne, showed us how to find it and kindly introduced us to many people.  This event  is to honor a fallen Ghost Dance participant, by the name of Thin Milk,  whose body was found years after his death, unburied, as he had been shot.  The family identified and then buried the remains and for the past 8 years, have had a memorial ride in which to acknowledge him.  This is a family as well as community gathering, and our group was extremely honored to be invited to experience it.

The Thin Milk Memorial Ride

Dave Dutton helping raise the flag

Upon our arrival, we were greeted by the host, Vic Swallow, and invited to join the riders and participants for breakfast.  We had very nice visits with  many of the people there, and they were very welcoming to our group.  They invited my husband, Dave Dutton, to help raise the flag, in honor of his service in Iraq and his career with the army.  Warriors have always been honored in this society, and it is extremely touching and fitting.  A tribal flag was also raised at this time.  There was a singer who played the drum, and prayers were said and sang.  This all took place in an outdoor circular structure, called a picnic ground.

This was followed by the gathering up on the horses and riders, and they were ceremonial smudged, with smoke from a fragrant sage.  Observers were given a sprig of sage, to take to the ride destination site.  Smudging is an act of purification and blessing, and this was very interesting to me.    The solemn nature of the experience showed the seriousness in which all took this event. Pictured is the smudging ceremony, and the riders following their 5 mile ride.  This was all in the basin of a valley in the Badlands region.

Riders at a distance

The riders rode for 5 miles, from the picnic grounds, to the cite in which Thin Milk was found.  Prayers were said, both at the site, and on the bluff above, where the observers gathered.  At this moment, an eagle rose in the air and  flew over the crowd… it was an amazing sign!  A blanket was awarded to the carrier of the staff, and this, too was in ceremonial fashion.  Following the arrival of the riders, the entire group went back to the picnic grounds, and were fed an traditional Native American meal.  An amazing and very touching day!

Smudging of the horses and riders

Riders at the conclusion

Badlands Landscape