Bismarck Tribune - Bismarck News - Sakakawea the star in Piehl's paintings

Sakakawea the star in Piehl's paintings

Sep 29, 2004 - 03:37:22 CDT

By VIRGINIA GRANTIER, Bismarck Tribune

He was hired to paint, but exactly what he would paint, what his creations would say about Lewis and Clark, was left completely to him.

And contemporary Western painter Walter Piehl of Minot didn't have to ponder long.

"It was pretty obvious to me," he said Tuesday.

Piehl, commissioned by the Bismarck Tribune -- his work intended to further enrich Bismarck's upcoming Circle of Cultures national Lewis and Clark signature event Oct. 22-31 -- focuses on Sakakawea.

He said he hopes the two paintings, unveiled Tuesday, help people feel something about Sakakawea's importance and accomplishments, which should be celebrated.

What she accomplished for the expedition, first while pregnant, then a woman with a little baby, "it was an amazing thing," he said.

Piehl, known for his abstract style, decided to merge expressionism and some realism in the paintings.

On the bottom portion of "The Family of Discovery," is a reproduction of a map made by Lewis after the expedition. Trails of paint from the piece's upper portion dribble down onto the map.

That painting, owned by the Tribune, a Circle of Cultures sponsor, will be on the cover of the official souvenir program.

Piehl is selling the other painting, "Mother and Child," at auction on the Internet at http://www.circleofcultures.com. Posters and prints also are available on the site and will be available at the October Circle of Cultures event.

Ken Rogers, the Tribune's managing editor, and a fellow artist, is an admirer of Piehl's work.

But he said Tuesday that before seeing the paintings, "I was unsettled all the night before."

Piehl's paintings are often blast-of-color blurs and tangled lines. Knowing Piehl's unique style, Rogers wondered if the paintings could even be used, if they'd be "too off."

But when he saw them:

"Wow," he remembers was his first reaction. "I felt great."

The paintings are so different from any other Lewis and Clark art, different from art at other signature events, and they speak about North Dakota and the experience here -- and that's what Rogers had wanted.

"We hope it transmits the kind of feeling that North Dakota feels about this great event," he said at the unveiling of the 5-foot-high "The Family of Discovery" at Five Nations Arts in Mandan.

(Reach reporter Virginia Grantier at 250-8254 or at vgrantier@ndonline.com)

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Comments

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Earl Nisbet wrote on Jul 13, 2006 8:24 PM:

" Dear Ms. Grantier: I was impressed with your fine article, but it left me wondering about "your Don Falconer." I am an architect who designed a house for Mr. and Mrs. Donald Falconer in Soquel, California. Don had a history here in the Santa Cruz area, and worked as Vice President for the local County Bank. I wrote a book which contains some drawings and photos of the "Falconer House," and since I have been trying to locate my old client, your article was shared with me. Do you think your Don and my Don falconer could be the same person? I will follow with a message to see part of my book containing the Falconer House, but the chapter you will see does not list the aforementioned house. Best - Earl Nisbet. "http://www.atlasbooks.com/marktplc/01609.htm" "

Earl Nisbet wrote on Jul 13, 2006 8:12 PM:

" I am an architect who designed a house for MR. Don Falconer and his wife Eunice in Soquel, California. Could the aforementioned Don Falconer be one and the same? I just finished a book called Taliesin Reflections that has drawings and photos of the house I designe in Soquel for the Falconers. To see part of the book click on :"http:www.atlasbooks.com/marktplc/01609.htm" Thank you, Earl Nisbet.California. "

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