revival
acrylic on 24 x 36 canvas
live art painting in attendance & support of the 2025 North American Bison Summit ~ a collaborative returning of conservation buffalo to the grasslands pathways. called Conservation Buffalo for their lack of cattle genetics, these still-wild mammals are rich in nutritional density (less fat, cholesterol, and calories than beef) and the reintroduction of these ecosystem engineers also means terraforming benefits from their stimulating patterns of movement across the terrain. this keystone species was nearly driven to the brink of extinction in the early 1900s. you have likely heard about the ‘great slaughter’; there was nothing ‘great’ about it at all, and yet the story was driven down all of our throats as some glorious historical deed worthy of emphasis at museums and in our public history lessons; the motivations to sever the Indigenous from their life’s commissary and spiritual connection are deeply interwoven with this historical crime linked with westward expansion. yellowstone is the only place in n. america where Buffalo have lived for a millennia since this catastrophic loss. here, now, is a tender grassroots beginning. this is a celebration worth documenting and illuminating in relation with remembering forward. this is something we all can learn from. generations further, there will be wild Buffalo roaming.
The painting sold to a lovely lady couple and their cute baby from the Texas Tribal Buffalo Project and is the first artwork to be placed in their new home.
additional live sketches + notes of various speakers & subjects from the bison summit (pencil / sharpie / brush pen on paper)
from the website; “The North American Bison Summit aims to be the most cutting-edge and inclusive gathering of people focused on keeping land in grass so that wildlife and grazers ranched by families can thrive as development pressures mount. The Summit will build upon past American Bison Society conferences and focus on collaborative practices and resources for conserving North American bison, grasslands and treasured ranching way of life in the countries of the United States, Canada, and Mexico.”
There were so many brilliant minds, stimulating conversations, and accomplished presentations aligning together for this cause and the primary theme was centered around Healing & fostering a relationship with Buffalo over the dominion of them. I only recorded a few of the speakers and topics through the live sketches here. I especially appreciated the state-of-the-art mobile trailer that promotes on-site field harvesting of the animal so that education and ceremony around processing meat becomes hands-on and available to the youth and elders.
Here in Wyoming, this leadership is brought on by the team at the Wind River Buffalo Initiative and currently has a count of 118 Buffalo for the Eastern Shoshone & 97 for the Northern Arapaho tribes. These numbers are growing and so is the momentum of this significant restoration. I can’t even begin to transcribe the depth of optimism that filled that space. What an exceptional gathering to experience.
