Back in August of 1987 Peter was invited to teach a watercolor workshop at the Sun Valley Art Center in Idaho. So we packed up the car, kids in tow, and headed up to this beautiful area of the country. After the workshop we took a few side trips to Glacier National Park, Livingston Montana and ended up dropping in at Yellowstone National Park. In our usual mode of travel we had no reservations. Just as we were asking for a cabin to rent a reservation cancellation had just come in. We quickly unloaded our stuff in the cabin and headed out to see Old Faithful erupt.
The next morning Peter was up at 6 AM and wandered off with his camera. Hours passed and still there was no sign of his return. When he did finally appear around 9 AM he had a whopper of a story to tell. In his own words he wrote “I was headed back to camp on the paved park service road when I noticed the herd of bison angling toward me. Trying to stay calm and moving slowly I got the first shots (photographs) -a crowd of bulls, cows and calves. As I turned to proceed a big bull (presumably the alpha male) parked himself directly in my path, as if to say, ‘Hold it right there and nobody gets hurt’. Soon the herd was ambling past me on both sides. Not knowing what might spook them, I avoided closeups photos. When all were across the service road the big bull moved on too, much to my relief. From a wild animal it was an exhilarating display of paternal diplomacy.”
Out of this encounter came the painting Gradually I was Surrounded. This painting would eventually make it into a show titled “Collective Stories.” After Peter passed away I donated this painting to the Nicolaysen Art Museum in Casper, Wyoming. See jpeg attached.
At one time 60 million bison lived in North America. They roamed from New York to California and from southern Canada to northern Mexico. In the 1600’s French trappers saw these large animals and called them “boeuf” meaning buffalo. However these creatures were not buffalo (water buffalo) like the Asian and African animals, but North American bison. The two species are not related.
By the mid 1800’s the number of American bison were shrinking rapidly. The US government and early settlers carried out this eradication purposefully to destroy the ecosystem and food source of Native American cultures. In 1890 only 1,000 bison remained. With this statistic weighing heavily on the conscience of many US citizens a conservation effort was started. By 1920 the numbers had risen to 12,000. By the year 2022 more than 400,000 bison have been restored to public, private and Native American lands.
We have couple Yellowstone still available. There are not posted here, but please feel free to inquire.
“Upper Geyser Basin” 2014 23x32 oil on canvas framed Holbrook Studio
“Study for Mammoth Hot Springs” 1980 22x16 watercolor/acrylic on paper unframed Holbrook Studio