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The relationship between the Indians and the white man has been a sad account of misunderstanding and violence. But in the early days, the Indians were friendly toward the white man. It was later, when the Indians found out that they were being robbed and that their buffalo were being slaughtered, that things changed. Prior to that, however, friendship did exist. "The Handwarmer" is a demonstration of that bond.
It is possible that, on a previous day, a Sioux hunter had observed the tell-tale plume of smoke and ridden across the high, open plains to investigate. Now he rides by with a companion to show him the homesteader's sod house and share with him the pleasure of this ready-made handwarmer. Obviously they find the concept pleasing. Perhaps this was followed later by an exchange of fresh meat for bread and coffee and eventual friendship.
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1909 - 1997
A Native American finding a Raggedy Ann doll on a lonely western road. A man
teaching his blonde, gingham-dressed, settler wife how to shoot a rifle. A trio
of Indians warming their hands over the chimney of a snow-buried cabin in an
otherwise empty landscape. These are just three of the stories told through the
art of Tom Lovell, considered by his peers one of the deans of Western art.
But that’s not all. He was equally famous for his exciting and thought-
provoking illustrations for such magazines as Life, The Saturday Evening Post
and National Geographic—as well as his stirring images of sweeping Civil War
battles which were considered so definitive that they were telecast as part of
the famous Public Television documentary on the conflict and published in the
accompanying best-selling book.
Lovell was the first artist to win the National Academy of Western Art’s
highest honor, the Prix de West, twice. He was elected to the Society of
Illustrators Hall of Fame in 1974 and eventually named a Hall of Fame Laureate.
In 1992, he was honored by both the National Academy of Western Art and the
National Cowboy Hall of Fame with a Lifetime Achievement Award and a
prestigious one-man retrospective show. He has left a lifetime of work that
will influence, impress and instill emotion for years to come.
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