Week 33: Aug. 18, 2024

Two pieces: End of the Trail, James Earle Fraser, American, modeled 1894, cast 1918, Bronze; Teaching a Mustang Pony to Pack Dead Game, Remington, American, ca. 1890, Oil on canvas

The wild west…

I grew up not far from the Gilcrease Museum in Tulsa, OK. Arguably the best museum of western art in the country, the Gilcrease has been closed for remodeling - or a complete building overhaul from the sounds of it - for at least 4 years now. I look forward to the next phase. But in the meantime, I’m excited to see these two powerful pieces here in KC.

The bronze work of Fraser is wonderful. The depth of the emotion that it transmits seems counter to its bronze medium. But I was especially struck by the use of ‘black and white’ oil paint in the Remington. There are a lot of works by Remington that show up in enough places to become commonly known - but I’ve not seen this one before. Honestly, it’s the first time I’ve seen any painting that I can recall use the B&W approach.

Then I read the title and was again startled. It had never occurred to me - but now seems obvious when you think about it - that horses would need to be taught to pack a dead animal. I’ve seen it portrayed so many times in images and movies but I never thought about making that incredibly unnatural act seem safe to a young horse. I think the combination of the B&W and the dramatic content of the image helps set up more strongly the sense that ‘this is not natural’ to the viewer, just like it must have been to the horse.