Latest Artwork: "The Night the Stars Fell"
I finally wrapped up work on my large bison painting yesterday. I still have to paint the sides of the canvas and give it one more coat of varnish but otherwise it's complete.
A little bit of info behind the symbolism and name of the painting:
For a while now I've been pretty fascinated by bison - they are the largest land mammal in North America and have a very massive presence, both physically and spiritually (at least for certain indigenous tribes). If you've ever been up close to a live bison they are pretty awe-inspiring creatures.
Last year I made an artwork called "The White Buffalo (and the Red)" that had a similar pairing of a white and red bison. I liked the combination and decided to revisit the motif in this current work. True white bison (non-albino) are extremely rare (the National Bison Association has estimated that they only occur in approximately one out of every 10 million births) and in Native American cultures are considered sacred. To them the white bison are symbols of peace, hope, rebirth and unity.
I incorporated stylized wheat designs into the piece as wheat is a symbol of fertility and abundance (wishing an abundance of peace / hope). The red bison is depicted in a protective and loving manner over the young white calf, showing that peace is something that needs to be preserved and protected. Finally, the sky has a pattern of stylized shooting stars. This ties in the title of the artwork ("The Night the Stars Fell"), which is a reference to the extremely vivid Leonid meteor shower of 1833, which was seen all over North America.
One Sioux winter count hide, in reference to the 1833 Leonids, was interpreted as saying, “The entire sky was streaked with fire as myriads of meteorites flashed across the heavens.” (Website source)
Many people thought that Judgement Day had come, or that the vivid sight was a sign from God. In African American history, the Night of the Falling Stars is also significant in that many of the slave owners, fearing Judgement Day, told their slaves where their families had been sold to and where. During the Night of the Falling Stars in 1833 it was recorded that the Cheyenne had killed a rare white buffalo, and inscribed a peace treaty on its hide. This is the first recorded example of an individual white bison, while the last recorded white bison was born this past June in Oregon at the Sacred World Peace Church, where they keep a small herd of white bison on a sanctuary / preserve. (Sadly, a year old white bison calf, born the previous year in Texas, has been killed recently, skinned by poachers).
In many ancient cultures meteor showers were considered omens and was a sign of big change coming. All of these symbols together in the painting are meant to signify that a big change is coming, an abundance of peace and hope.
And now for the pictures of the artwork. This took about five days to create altogether, and about an estimated 25-27 hours of my time. The original is for sale. Please email me if you would like to inquire about purchasing it.
A little bit of info behind the symbolism and name of the painting:
For a while now I've been pretty fascinated by bison - they are the largest land mammal in North America and have a very massive presence, both physically and spiritually (at least for certain indigenous tribes). If you've ever been up close to a live bison they are pretty awe-inspiring creatures.
Last year I made an artwork called "The White Buffalo (and the Red)" that had a similar pairing of a white and red bison. I liked the combination and decided to revisit the motif in this current work. True white bison (non-albino) are extremely rare (the National Bison Association has estimated that they only occur in approximately one out of every 10 million births) and in Native American cultures are considered sacred. To them the white bison are symbols of peace, hope, rebirth and unity.
I incorporated stylized wheat designs into the piece as wheat is a symbol of fertility and abundance (wishing an abundance of peace / hope). The red bison is depicted in a protective and loving manner over the young white calf, showing that peace is something that needs to be preserved and protected. Finally, the sky has a pattern of stylized shooting stars. This ties in the title of the artwork ("The Night the Stars Fell"), which is a reference to the extremely vivid Leonid meteor shower of 1833, which was seen all over North America.
One Sioux winter count hide, in reference to the 1833 Leonids, was interpreted as saying, “The entire sky was streaked with fire as myriads of meteorites flashed across the heavens.” (Website source)
Many people thought that Judgement Day had come, or that the vivid sight was a sign from God. In African American history, the Night of the Falling Stars is also significant in that many of the slave owners, fearing Judgement Day, told their slaves where their families had been sold to and where. During the Night of the Falling Stars in 1833 it was recorded that the Cheyenne had killed a rare white buffalo, and inscribed a peace treaty on its hide. This is the first recorded example of an individual white bison, while the last recorded white bison was born this past June in Oregon at the Sacred World Peace Church, where they keep a small herd of white bison on a sanctuary / preserve. (Sadly, a year old white bison calf, born the previous year in Texas, has been killed recently, skinned by poachers).
In many ancient cultures meteor showers were considered omens and was a sign of big change coming. All of these symbols together in the painting are meant to signify that a big change is coming, an abundance of peace and hope.
And now for the pictures of the artwork. This took about five days to create altogether, and about an estimated 25-27 hours of my time. The original is for sale. Please email me if you would like to inquire about purchasing it.
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