Hey, Being an Artist Sounds Like a Good Idea…
In the early ‘80’s I was working as a horse wrangler and packer for hunting camps around Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Once every week or two we would head to town with a load of meat or to change hunters and the bright lights always drew me to the action down on the square. I was a young man without a plan that went much farther than the paycheck in my pocket and the world was my oyster. After riding down out of the elk country on frozen trails, leading strings of half broke horses and mules through grizzly country it felt good to have as a destination places like the Cowboy Bar where a young fellow wild-eyed from weeks in camp could unwind. I was not an anomaly to the folks who ran these places, however. They had long known young fellows like me and absolutely specialized in separating us from our paychecks. This was accomplished with alcohol, pool tables, live music and a hardwood dance floor where every shy packer became a regular Cassanova cowboy by midnight, if even only in his own mind. I swear the girls were all pretty in those days and many was the time we mountain folk threw back our heads and bugled like the bulls we were being paid to hunt.
These wild nights out of the hills were entertaining enough as long as the money would last. However, in a resort town like Jackson that wasn’t long. It was a plain fact that a packer’s wages didn’t stretch very far. Even if the tips had been good. Luckily the Square in Jackson Hole offered another form of entertainment for guys like me: art galleries. Good ones. Many a cold night after the music and lights faded I could be found standing in front of these high end galleries looking in the windows at paintings and sculptures by great artists who depicted the life we were leading in the mountains. It kind of made a young guide feel like a celebrity of sorts. It was fun to see the life I was leading depicted on canvas and to gauge the paintings with a discerning eye to see which artists knew how to tie pack knots properly and which ones were just making it up. There was one painting in particular that used to mesmerize me. It was painted by Jim Wilcox and was a huge depiction of the Tetons. It commanded the power of those mountains and I could look at it until I was numb from the cold. During the day I would stand in the warmth of the gallery and appreciate it up close. If only I could paint something that gave the viewer the gift that painting gave me…
Along with the fascination for the art was the fascination with the prices they were commanding. One painting could sell for more money than a packer would make in many seasons, freezing his fingers in the process. I couldn’t believe it. How hard could being a painter be? All I needed were some brushes and a canvas… Ah, Jackson Hole was a fun town in those days. The cold frosty nights in front of the galleries offered endless possibilities for a starry- eyed dreamer and packer of horses.
More often than not, though, reality set in with the coming of daylight and the carriage always turned back into a pumpkin all too soon . The horses and mules would be loaded into trailers, the boss would gather up the new hunters and red-eyed packers pointed the pickup trucks back to the hills for another week or two in pursuit of elusive elk , another paycheck to replace the one donated to the lights of town; dreams of those lights disappearing into the mists of snow and fog that made up the hunting season mountain mornings beneath the mighty Tetons. Those hours between waking up too early and packing frozen horses for the trail could be rough enough, that’s for sure. However, young fellows in the height of their glory are a lot like the elk they are being paid to hunt and have a tendency to think they are bullet proof. It might be ten below and your entire pack string might come uncorked at the challenge of a moose for the trail, but these things only make for great stories once returned to the snug warmth of tent camps back in the high country. A new set of hunters was a new audience for tales of glory. “Keep up with me, mister, and you’ll see paradise!”
The end of the season is a bittersweet time for mountain heroes. On one hand the frozen tents could be packed up and loaded on tired mules for the final trip out. By the last go round the snow was often quite deep and it took good seasoned stock and help to get the hunters and the outfit out safe. Most of the stories had already been told and now it was just work; cold, hard work. The folks in town were ready and waiting of course, but after the obligatory hangover installations it was time to take stock and figure out the next step. The autumn of 1984 I found myself on a fork in the trail. That summer I had come into Jackson Hole horseback, riding down from Montana through the Yellowstone country. I loved the Tetons and didn’t want to leave but had to do something. I left my horse and mule with the last outfitter I had worked for paying him for winter pasture until I returned in the spring when he promised me work. I spent $250.00 on an old reservation jalopy, threw my saddle, duffle and dogs in the back and figured to head for New Mexico where I would look for ranch work. I was standing at the gas pump filling the tank for the journey when a school bus full of sled dogs and dog sleds pulled up for gas, Rocky Mountain Dog Sled Tours written on the side. My interest was tweaked.
Now I had been a dog musher in Alaska and covered a mile or two on a sled before embarking on my quest to be a cowboy. I was drawn to the bus full of sled dogs like a bee to honey. The bearded fellow who ran the show took sled dog tours around Jackson and yes, as a matter of fact, could use an experienced dog musher who knew how to deal with tourists. It was a lucky thing that fellow pulled up and hired me because the car didn’t last more than 30 miles before giving up the ghost… But then, that’s the magic of youth.
Being a guide on a dog sled isn’t that much different from being one horse back. You just do it from the back of the string instead of the front. That winter found me mushing around the Tetons admiring the view (I just love the Tetons), the Gros Ventre River looking for Big Horn Sheep to show folks, up places like Granite Creek for a dip in the hot springs and moonlit rides with guests wrapped in Buffalo Robes. It was a lot of fun and kept me in my beloved Jackson Hole for the winter.
The night life began to lose its glamour for me, though. Besides, it was expensive. I found myself spending more of my off time on the many ski slopes around Jackson and rented a place across the street from the chair lift at Snow King Resort so I could ski whenever I wasn’t on the sled. Life was rolling along in a perfect manner as far as I was concerned. I was young, strong and living in country I loved. Beside mushing tourists around and skiing day in and day out I was drawn back to the art galleries. The people working in them knew I wasn’t a buyer but were always kind enough to let me gaze. They tolerated my questions and as time went on I began to recognize the different artists and to dream of being one of them. How hard could it be? My mom had run an art school when I was a kid in Spokane after all and hadn’t I an art minor from college? Of course I did. By the time spring came and the snow melted enough to gather my horses for another summer in the mountains I had a plan. “Direction”. It had been a regular snowbound epiphany: I was to be a great and famous artist. Heck, I had been painting watercolors forever and this life I was leading was giving me all kinds of ideas for paintings. It was settled then, I would give myself two years to be an artist featured in Trailside Gallery on Jackson’s main square or I would think of something else to do with my life. Simple. It was comforting to know I now knew the plan life had for me. Right then would have been a good time to contact a gallery and find out what it took to get in but rather than be bothered by such unromantic endeavors I saddled my horse and headed out into back into the wilderness wandering mountain trails, dreaming of the day the art world bowed down and showered me with accolades.( Not to mention all that money.)
My snowbound epiphany was a long twenty-five or so years ago now. I am still on the Rocky Mountain trails of course. As I look out the window of my cabin here in Nye today it is clear and cold, the sun shining off the snow like diamonds. The horses are on winter pasture and I have another painting on the easel. The Trailside Gallery down in Jackson hasn’t called yet, but I haven’t given up. I sidetracked a couple of times, becoming an outfitter for 25 years for example. I always had my winters to paint, though. I studied oils for twelve years under my old mentor Hall Diteman, but then he passed away. Next summer I will be featured artist in The Artful Event in Red Lodge, Mt., and another gallery in Billings called the other day to ask if I would have a show there so I am still putting one foot in front of the other. At the Buffalo Bill Art Show in Cody this summer I found myself sitting at the same table with Jim Wilcox, the artist who painted the giant Teton painting that held me captive those long winter nights so long ago. He is a fine man and still one of my heroes. Of course, one of these days I still hope to see my work on the wall at Trailside. It has been a long and rugged trail, but those seem to be the kind I like. It is a beautiful ride.
Well, thank you for dropping by the site. I appreciate your spending time with me. If you are looking for gift ideas don’t forget an original Tom Wolfe painting before the prices go through the ceiling!!
P.S. On another note you might check out Lynn’s site for some interesting gift ideas. She just came back from Africa and is working with some folks who are helping provide clean water to the less fortunate in the world. Click on www.FamilyTravel.com Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
I love your art, Tom, but your last two months web comments (November and December) suggest a book!!! I loved them and think I am beginning to understand my son's journey.
Blessings...you listen to your own drummer, for sure, and I am pleased and proud!
mm
Posted by: maxey megrue | December 12, 2011 at 02:48 PM
Hey Tom, I really enjoy your web site with your art and your comments,and I have to agree with you mom, you should write a book, and I will be your first customer, I have still not heard the entire story of your trip down from Alaska by dog sled. Keep up the super work, your freind Chuck B
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