A Mix of Materials

Going beyond oils to appreciate other mediums

By Kristin Hoerth

From the Center is Where Life Begins by Monte Yellow Bird Sr.

From the Center is Where Life Begins by Monte Yellow Bird Sr.

This story was featured in the March/April 2020 issue of Southwest Art magazine. Get the Southwest Art March/April 2020 print issue or digital download now–then subscribe to Southwest Art and never miss another story.

In the pages of Southwest Art each month, the images shown are dominated by one medium above all others—oil paintings. And for good reason: For centuries, oil has been the principal medium for artists in the Western world. Visit most major museums and you’ll see more oil paintings than anything else hanging on the walls; visit many top galleries in the western United States, and the same is true. For better or worse, oil’s advantages mean that it plays an outsize role in the art world.

But there are countless other mediums out there, and they deserve our attention. That’s why this month’s features are devoted to four artists living in the West who work with materials other than oils. Clive Tyler, who’s based in Taos, NM, creates his landscapes using pastels. Pete Zaluzec, who lives outside Chicago—and who previously created sculpture from stone and bronze—now focuses on one-of-a-kind photographic prints on Gampi paper (read about the details of his process beginning on page 86). Amy Laugesen, our cover artist, devotes herself to ceramics with exquisite glazes. And Monte Yellow Bird Sr., who is of Hidatsa and Arikara tribal heritage, expresses himself in ledger artworks.

Of these four mediums, ledger art is perhaps the least known. The term refers to narrative drawings or paintings done on paper taken from accounting ledger books, and it flourished during the late 19th century. It typically features flattened, outlined figures filled with solid colors and very little in the way of backgrounds. Traditional subjects included battles, hunting scenes, courtship, and religious practices. Today’s ledger artists may follow historic precedent or take the medium in new directions, incorporating contemporary elements and themes while staying true to the colorful, graphic look and feel established by their predecessors.

Such is the case with the work of Yellow Bird, who creates artworks using his ceremonial name, Black Pinto Horse. While they are firmly rooted in tradition, his compositions carry messages that are well tuned to present-day issues. “Doing ledger art,” Yellow Bird explains, “is telling very important teachings and lessons to help people associate with and understand what life is all about, teachings about the preciousness of life, the sacredness of women, and the importance of honoring our Mother Earth.”

I hope you’ll enjoy learning about this month’s featured artists as well as the creative inspiration and effort that goes into their unique artworks. Perhaps they will inspire you to seek out even more examples of creativity that goes beyond the world of oil painting.

This story was featured in the March/April 2020 issue of Southwest Art magazine. Get the Southwest Art March/April 2020 print issue or digital download now–then subscribe to Southwest Art and never miss another story.

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