Singleton-Biss Museum Of Fine Art

SINGLETON-BISS MUSEUM OF FINE ART

A Circle In The Trees (1993)
Oil on Canvas
19.5 x 15.5
From The Collection Of Tia

A Fast Sketch Of Floating Pads (1994)
Oil on Canvas
29.5 x 19.5
From The Collection Of Dr. Wayne & Nona Yakes

A Great Heard Of Buffalo Thundering Across The Sky (1997)
Oil on Canvas
60 x 48
From The Collection Of Paul & Bonnie Zueger

A High Chinook Along The Beartooth Range (1987)
Oil on Canvas
64 x 78
From The Collection Of Tia

A Mountain Crow Camp Where Arrow Creek Comes Out Of The Gap (1995)
Oil on Canvas
54 x 75
From The Collection Of Paul & Bonnie Zueger

A Stormy Sky At Sunset (1986)
Oil on Canvas
40 x 30
From The Collection Of Tia

Ancestral Reflections On Still Water
Oil on Canvas
40 x 50
From The Collection Of Robert Young

Autumn Rider (1993)
Oil on Canvas
19.5 x 15.5
From The Collection Of Paul & Bonnie Zueger

Between The Sky, Earth (1995)
Oil on Canvas
60 x 48
From The Collection Of Dr. Wayne & Nona Yakes

Charging Through A Rainbow Storm (1997)
Oil on Canvas
36 x 88.5
From The Collection Of Tia

Confederate Lieutenant From The Great Northern Territories (1995)
Oil on Canvas
23.5 x 31.5
From The Collection Of Paul & Bonnie Zueger

Crazy In The Full Moon (1990)
Oil on Canvas
19.5 x 15.5
From The Collection Of Dr. Wayne & Nona Yakes

Don't They Know They Can't Capture A Medicine Man (1986)
Oil on Canvas
50 x 66
From The Collection Of Dr. Wayne & Nona Yakes

Early Snow In The Bear Tooth Range (1986)
Oil on Canvas
60 x 84
From The Collection Of Paul & Bonnie Zueger

End Of The Trail (1994)
Oil on Canvas
47.5 x 35.5
From The Collection Of Paul & Bonnie Zueger

End Of The Trail (1994)
Oil on Canvas
59.5 x 47.5
From The Collection Of Paul & Bonnie Zueger

Medicine Robes On The Horizon (1987)
Oil on Canvas
15.5 x 19.5
From The Collection Of Paul & Bonnie Zueger

Morning Of The Mountain Crow Sundancers (1997)
Oil on Canvas
10.75 x 13.75
From The Collection Of Dr. Wayne & Nona Yakes

Painted Morning (1988)
Oil on Canvas
29.75 x 23.5
From The Collection Of Tia

Plenty Coups In The Sun (1990)
Oil on Canvas
84 x 60
From The Collection Of Tia

Portrait Of A Friend From New Mexico (1989)
Oil on Canvas
37.5 x 29.5
From The Collection Of Paul & Bonnie Zueger

Riders At The Headwater Of The Yellowstone (1995)
Oil on Canvas
47.5 x 59.5
From The Collection Of Dr. Wayne & Nona Yakes

Riders In Purple (1988)
Oil on Canvas
11 x 14
From The Collection Of Tia

Riding Through An Orange Morning (1993)
Oil on Canvas
20 x 30
From The Collection Of Tia

They Gathered One Last Time To Stand Before The Sun (1993)
Oil on Canvas
19.5 x 29.5
From The Collection Of Paul & Bonnie Zueger

Three Riders In An Autumn Meadow (1998)
Oil on Canvas
17.75 x 23.5
From The Collection Of Paul & Bonnie Zueger

Three Teepees In The Snow (1991)
Oil on Canvas
60 x 48
From The Collection Of Tia

Thunder On The Sweet Grass (1987)
Oil on Canvas
24 x 29.5
From The Collection Of Dr. Wayne & Nona Yakes

Untitled
Oil on Canvas
60 x 84
From The Collection Of Dr. Wayne & Nona Yakes

War Shields Winter Vision (1987)
Oil on Canvas
64 x 78
From The Collection Of Paul & Bonnie Zueger

Warrior In The Rain On A Windy Day (1997)
Oil on Canvas
24 x 88
From The Collection Of Dr. Wayne & Nona Yakes

Warriors Riding Through The Dust (1998)
Oil on Canvas
30 x 40
From The Collection Of Paul & Bonnie Zueger

Watering The Horses On A Cold But Marvelous Morning (1986)
Oil on Canvas
48 x 60
From The Collection Of Tia

Winter Ponies Of The Nez Pearce (1986)
Oil on Canvas
60 x 80
From The Collection Of Paul & Bonnie Zueger

I believe my work was most influenced by the European masters - the violent translucent skies of Turner, the impressionistic brush work of Monet, the illusive suggestiveness of Whistler's landscapes. I also have a great admiration for the stark emotional statements of Munch and Kokoschka. I was much taken by the landscapes of the American painter Alvert Pinkham Ryder and by the garish color schemes of the Fauve movement. I believe that my work projects these admirations with obvious awareness of the freedom of Pollock, DeKooning, and the action painters of the late fifties.

I have always been most concerned with the quality of paint as opposed to the statement. I consider myself an oil painter and am obsessed with stretching the medium to every limit I can find. I have painted in oils since age twelve. Diligently working hours on end in the studio, I have become so at ease with my medium that at times the fluid spontaneity with which I work happens almost automatically. I have no recognition of what others may call accident. I often utilize unorthodox effects to cause visual excitement. In my mind there are no limitations to the manner in which paint may be applied to the canvas. After I find an interesting effect and use it over andover again, this effect may become a tool.

I draw my subject matter from the rich cultural background of my people, the Crow Nation of the northern plains, who were once a nomadic people roaming the plains freely, people with a spirituality built upon a oneness with the earth and the elements. Their lore was immersed in natural powers, the ability to conjure direction from the Gods which are one with every being, whether it be live or inanimate.

At an early age I made the commitment to dedicate my life to being an artist. My vision has become as tunnel vision - focusing on oil painting as the prime motive for living. I like to create planes of texture and space congifurations of brushwork that lend themselves to participation in the illustration, creates the scene. I have often been delighted by other's observations of images I had not seen in a piece.

Earl Biss, Thoughts On Art