GREAT FALLS — Western Art Week is in full swing, and while visitors to the event can get their fill at 11 shows across Great Falls, they can also take in an exhibit highlighting the works of a true cowboy artist at the Paris Gibson Square Museum of Art.
It is an exhibit by Walter Piehl Jr., a legendary contemporary western artist who also happens to be a big name in rodeo from days gone by.
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"It's a fusion, but it's also very unique and very distinct and very different," Nicole Evans said.
Evans is the chief curator at the Paris Gibson Square Museum of Art. Although the exhibit isn’t on the list of official Western Art Week venues, Piehl is no stranger to the event or western art lovers.
"He is a historical artist. He's a rodeo artist, but really he is a contemporary abstract, artist who works in a very expressive manner," Evans said.
"He has participated many times over the years. His work has been featured in the Russell auction, and he also featured is featured in a lot of the Western art auctions across the United States and exhibits," Evans said.
From artist to educator, Piehl’s influence has had a lasting impact on the world of western art.
"One of the core reasons for why he creates work is as an educator. So years of educating students, inspiring and working with students who became great artists like Monte Yellow Bird, and Ben Pease. So these artists who are actively working in the field as well, were all students of Walter Piehl's and he was a guiding factor in their work and in their success as well," Evans said.
Featured in three galleries, the exhibit shows the North Dakota Rodeo Hall of Famer's artwork from the 1960s up until today.
"The main Thayer Gallery contains work that give you a good timeline of the development of his work and ideas from his early days in school, kind of starting at square one," Evans said.
In the Cobb Gallery are Piehl's works from the Northern Plains National Heritage Area Suite.
"It's a selection of historical works that kind of detail, different aspects of what occurred in this region after the arrival of Lewis and Clark and how that impacted the region," Evans said.
Visitors to the exhibit can gain a better understanding of the longtime Minot State University art professor’s career through a documentary that plays at the museum. It’s in the same room that houses a replica of Piehl’s studio, which also features rodeo memorabilia including boots, chaps, a well-worn hat, and a gold buckle.
"There's a long history of the importance of the artist studio in, in art. You can see that here in Great Falls when you go to the Charlie Russell and you visit his log cabin studio, you know, there's a lot of myth, mystique, there's a lot of work that's done there," Evans said.
The exhibit runs through Aug. 29, long after another Western Art Week has ridden into the sunset. Piehl will be at the museum for an artist lecture on May 8.
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