"My
memory of the important events in my early life are set
somehow in dramatic theatre lighting. We lived in a
little place where there was no electricity and the
inside of our wooden home was lit by kerosene lanterns.
I always felt drawn into the light and everything around
the glow disappeared into a blur."
-Tom Gilleon
Gilleon
was born in 1942 and raised in Florida by his grandparents in the tiny
outpost of Starke, near Jacksonville and the storied banks of the Suwannee
River. His grandfather had immigrated to the United States from Scotland and
became a renowned cabinetmaker. His grandmother was a full-blooded Cherokee.
Gilleon earned a scholarship to play baseball at the University of Florida
where he took courses in architecture. He served in the Navy in the early
1960s and then worked as an illustrator for NASA’s Apollo space program.
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Blue Norther
“A
Blue Norther,” says Tom Gilleon, “is a rapidly moving cold front
that causes temperatures to drop quickly. It often brings with it
precipitation followed by a period of blue skies and cold weather.
The main cause of such a dramatic cold snap is an extremely strong
storm system separating warm, humid air from frigid, arctic air. If
the front passes through at sunrise or sunset, one can expect to see
an intense and dramatic display of color in the skies.”
The lesson in Plains’ weather was only a start. Tom, in describing
the work, talked about the blend of colors in the sky on the right
side of the painting as being “to the north, because the dwelling’s
entrances always faced east, even in a large village.” The
philosophy, Tom explained, was that every day was a new birth and
that if you opened the door flap, the first thing you would see was
the sun coming up on a new day. A quick look at Gilleon’s Fine Art
Editions (with multiple dwellings) shows that he adheres to this in
his paintings.
Blue Norther is far more than a meteorological or history lesson. It
is a dazzling work of art from one of the hottest artists in the
market today.
Limited Edition Giclée canvas
handsigned by the artist
"You can still find this elevator standing outside of Big Timber,
Montana,” begins Tom Gilleon, “but the beautiful artwork is gone.
The corrugated metal on which it was painted has fallen away,
revealing the aged and weathered wooden structure beneath.
“I’d like to imagine that this Montana grain elevator artwork was
the inspiration for the cowboy on the bucking bronco we associate
with the state of Wyoming as opposed to the other way around. The
most widely recognized version first showed up on Wyoming license
plates in the 1930s. There is a big debate in Wyoming as to the
horse pictured (is it Red Wing, Steamboat or Deadman?) and who the
rider is (Guy Holt or “Stub” Farlow?). The Wyoming National Guard
has had its own version since WWI and the University of Wyoming got
theirs in the 1920s. What if the cowboy and horse are Big Timber
locals and that all the other designs were inspired by the site of
this magnificent Montana artifact? That would be a neat story.”
Limited Edition Giclée canvas
handsigned by the artist
gallery wrapped
“You recognize their silhouettes against the sky line right away,”
says Tom Gilleon, “they are prairie skyscrapers. Grain elevators are
a Western icon just as the tipi is. Today most of them are old
ruins, but they still tower above the horizon throughout the West.
The fact that they still stand is a testament to their utilitarian
architecture, designed to contain corn or grain by the ton.
“Because of the light in the window, I’ve been asked if Cascade High
Rise is a haunted elevator or if it is really abandoned. I don’t
know if it is haunted or not, but it is abandoned. The light you see
in the window at the top is not radiating from within, but rather
illuminated from without. At just the right time of the year the
sunrise will be reflected in the remaining panes of glass high up on
the structure. It’s the end of an old time and the dawning of
another.”
Limited Edition Giclée canvas
handsigned by the artist
gallery wrapped
“Indian Sunset is also a double entendre representative of not only
the painting’s strong visual, but of the decline in the Indian way
of life,” Tom Gilleon explains. “I have such respect for them as a
people. My goal is that my work conveys the beauty of their world
and their deep-rooted connection to it.
“The painting is partially inspired by the Elton John song Indian
Sunset as well. It is a compassionate song and the story he tells of
the fall of a young warrior comes across even though the facts in
the song aren’t necessarily correct. What is important is the
emotion the music creates and that’s how he approaches his work.
“I
do things a little like Elton and try to not let the facts get in
the way of a good story. I’m a little more visual than historical.
Many of the designs I put on the outside of a tipi would more often
have been adorning the inside. I exaggerate certain things like the
scale of the sun. It would never appear this large, but it is a
central element to the story. Native American art does the same. If
it is important, emphasize it.
“Color is another powerful component. I am looking for vibrancy and
impact and try not to second guess a brushstroke. I’m painting with
more confidence. I feel like I’m getting closer to how I painted at
age four.”
Limited Museum Edition Giclée canvas
handsigned by the artist
(gallery wrapped)
“The study of tipi rings has picked up
significantly in the past few years. These circles of stone can be
found throughout the West and I have a number of these rings on my
ranch in Montana. It is believed that the stones were used to hold
the skins that made up the lodge coverings securely on the ground,”
explains Tom Gilleon.
“There is a significant difference in
the size of these rings, thus the size of the dwellings. This
increase of size often coincides with the arrival of the horse in
North America. A tribe with tamed mounts not only ranged further and
hunted better, they could now move larger and heavier items as well.
Early Spanish explorers noted the extent to which the Indians
employed dogs as their beasts of burden. Even a large dog could pull
only a fraction of what a horse pulled or carried. Therefore, tipi
rings are often referred to as dog or horse rings, depending on
their size.
“There are two buffalo and a horse
adorning the lodge in Coeur d'Alene. The horse is painted over (or
imposed over) one of the buffalo to signify the extent to which the
horse allowed the Plains People to dominate their hunt of the
buffalo. I couldn’t tell you for sure that this type of lodge would
have been found in the Coeur D’Alene area or not, but this sunset
certainly was. It was a relaxing and gorgeous end to a beautiful day
in that area of Idaho. As I watched the sun go down I couldn’t help
but think of how the same scene would have appeared when the area
was even more tranquil and slightly less developed some 150 years
ago.”
Limited Edition Giclée canvas
handsigned by the artist
gallery wrapped
Sitting Bull and the Plains Indian
warriors gathered along the banks of Little Bighorn River did
not panic when camp scouts reported the approach of the U.S.
Cavalry. During a Sundance not long before, Sitting Bull
experienced a vision of a great number of dead Union “soldiers
falling into camp” from the skies. It was a sign, he felt, of a
great victory to come.
“This painting, thanks to Daniel Long Soldier, has become a far
more important piece than I could have imagined,” artist R. Tom
Gilleon enthusiastically relates. “I had wanted to give an
accurate depiction of the area where Custer met his end and tell
some of the Little Bighorn story from the Indian’s point of
view. Daniel’s Lakota Wicitowa (Lakota Paintings) of real
warrior’s exploits, which I’ve used as the pictographs on the
tepees, add a spirit to the piece that I couldn’t have achieved
myself.
“The ribbon of river you see is the Little Bighorn. From a
vantage point such as this, it would be hard to see the true
size of Sitting Bull’s encampment. On the Plains, American
soldiers were used to encountering villages of 50 to 60 lodges.
In a landscape such as this, it’s easy to see why they would
have had trouble seeing just how many Indians were waiting
below.”
The MuseumEdition™ of Soldiers Falling
into Camp is intended to be accompanied by Daniel Long Soldier’s
diptych Day of Yellow Hair with the first 25 of that edition
reserved to create collectible sets with matching numbers.
Collectors can also pair the individual prints of Long Soldier’s
drawings with the smaller Fine Art Giclée Canvas Edition.
Limited Museum Edition Giclée canvas
handsigned by the artist
gallery wrapped
Sitting Bull and the Plains Indian
warriors gathered along the banks of Little Bighorn River did
not panic when camp scouts reported the approach of the U.S.
Cavalry. During a Sundance not long before, Sitting Bull
experienced a vision of a great number of dead Union “soldiers
falling into camp” from the skies. It was a sign, he felt, of a
great victory to come.
“This painting, thanks to Daniel Long Soldier, has become a far
more important piece than I could have imagined,” artist R. Tom
Gilleon enthusiastically relates. “I had wanted to give an
accurate depiction of the area where Custer met his end and tell
some of the Little Bighorn story from the Indian’s point of
view. Daniel’s Lakota Wicitowa (Lakota Paintings) of real
warrior’s exploits, which I’ve used as the pictographs on the
tepees, add a spirit to the piece that I couldn’t have achieved
myself.
“The ribbon of river you see is the Little Bighorn. From a
vantage point such as this, it would be hard to see the true
size of Sitting Bull’s encampment. On the Plains, American
soldiers were used to encountering villages of 50 to 60 lodges.
In a landscape such as this, it’s easy to see why they would
have had trouble seeing just how many Indians were waiting
below.”
Limited Edition Giclée canvas
handsigned by the artist
gallery wrapped
"Abstract shapes tend to
dominate my work, rectangles, triangles, circles and squares.
Even when I paint a figure, especially one with a headdress, the
focus is generally on the shape the headdress creates. In this
case, it is just the opposite; it’s the man’s profile that
really grabbed me. In fact, I cropped off the edge of the
feathers on his headdress in the painting so they wouldn’t
distract from his face. Handwritten on the back of the old
photograph was ‘Lakota, Pemmican’ so I’ve always assumed that
was this fellow’s name. This painting is about the years, the
miles, the knowledge, the experience, the sorrow, the pride and
the joy etched in this man’s face that was his life"
- Tom
Gilleon
Limited Edition Giclée canvas
handsigned by the artist
While not common to the Great
Plains, the summer months do occasionally draw
swarms of fireflies as far west as the Rockies. When
they did range west, a visit by the
Little Star People
to a summer encampment was a treat for the entire
band. The magic of moonrise on a warm summer evening
became all the more spectacular when accompanied by
the dance of these blithe spirits.
The original is part of the permanent collection of
the Buffalo Bill Historical Center in Cody, Wyoming.
Little StarPeoplewill
be available in two sizes, but given the popularity
of Gilleon’s previous releases, they will disappear
quickly. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to enjoy
a fine art’s summer evening at the campfire year
round.
Limited
Edition Masterwork
Giclée Canvas handsigned by the artist
Picture This
framing & gallery is an authorized representative for:
The Greenwich Workshop, Millpond Press, Somerset House,
The Western Lights Artists Group,
The Artist's Garden, Clearwater Publishing and other Fine Art publishers
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