Strength & Resilience

For Jeremy Winborg’s newest painting at The Russell, he turns to a fascinating chapter in Blackfoot history.

By Michael Clawson

One of Utah painter Jeremy Winborg’s biggest breaks as an artist came at The Russell a handful of years back when a piece he offered received frantic and sustained bidding that produced an impressive auction record for a young, rising artist. Ever grateful for the response he received at the annual sale in Montana, Winborg routinely gives the auction some of his best material, and 2022 will be no exception.Jeremy Winborg, Pitamakan: Braver than the Braves, oil, 33 x 50”. Available at The Russell, Great Falls, MT. Estimate: $28/32,000

For his newest piece, the painter turned to the history of Montana and the Blackfoot people. His interest and research eventually led him to Pitamakan: Braver than the Braves, which falls neatly within the artist’s “badass women” series of works that show the strength of Native American women in the Old West. As neatly as the work came together, it did not happen overnight. It took research long before paint ever touched a brush. Winborg sat down for an interview about the work and its process.The model sits on a barrel to simulate a horse. The artist will use this photo and other material to help compose the final painting.

Tell me the history of this story. How did you hear about it and when did you decide to put this historic figure into paint?

In general, there isn’t a lot of written history of indigenous women and I’m always looking for inspiration for the next painting. I actually saw a short Instagram post about Pitamakan and that sparked my interest to dive deeper and that’s when I found [a blog] post from historian Ken Robison. [Read Robison’s article at fortbenton.blogspot.com.] I was instantly struck by the amount of detail about her life which is something you don’t get very often and I was also struck by how unique her story is. Since she’s from the Blackfoot tribe and her history is also the history of Montana, I thought it would be a great piece to show at The Russell which is held annually in Great Falls, Montana. I knew about this story a few years ago, but it took me some time to get the models, the clothing and all aspects of it prepared so I could create a painting worthy of her story.Riders pose for photos on horseback with dogs at their feet. Details from these shoots ended up in the final painting.

Various paint studies for Pitamakan: Braver than the Braves.

What is Pitamakan’s story? Why is she important to remember? What aspects of the story were you drawn to?
The only famous woman warrior of the Blackfeet Tribe was Pitamakan or Running Eagle. At the age of 15, she was allowed on a buffalo hunt and killed her first buffalo. After the death of her parents, she became the head of her family. She was a very attractive young woman. At 20, she took her dad’s rifle, dressed in men’s clothing and snuck onto a raid with her tribe. There she was able to steal six horses and the whole tribe was impressed with her. After that, she did not have to sneak onto the war parties—they considered her good luck. After many successful raids, she distinguished herself as a warrior and became a war chief and led her own expeditions. The French traders called her the Blackfeet Joan of Arc. Pitamakan Falls, Pitamakan Lake and Pitamakan Pass in Glacier National Park are named after her. White men came and renamed the waterfall Trick Falls, but it’s original name and history were restored recently. Pitamakan’s story is a story of overcoming trials and of resilience and strength and of never giving up. I like to paint strong women and showcase their strength in my artwork. Women are integral to the tribe and their people. I grew up as the only boy in a house full of sisters and I have four daughters of my own, so I see their strength and appreciate what they contribute to my family.Jeremy Winborg paints Pitamakan: Braver than the Braves.

It seems like you did a ton of research for this piece. Were you surprised about what information was out there?
Usually when researching Native American women, you’ll only get a little snippet here and there about them. I was surprised and excited about the amount of information I was able to find about Pitamakan. There were so many details in her story that span across her entire lifetime. I’d love to paint more of her in the future.

It’s fun to see how you developed the piece. Is this a fairly normal process in your work, or did you do anything special for this painting?
This painting was more involved than most paintings. I traveled to Wyoming to photograph brothers whose family own a wild horse sanctuary in the Wind River reservation. I like to get my models dressed and in position as authentically as possible during our photo shoots and then in the studio I’ll go back in and add necklaces, arrows, bags or whatever details are needed.

A quick painting of a dog done from life.Tell me about your models and your live photo shoots? How important is it to use Native American models and real locations?
It is integral to my work to only use Native Americans as models. As my models have had the chance to see themselves in my work they are eager to model again as a way to showcase their culture. It’s a neat experience for them to dress in the authentic regalia of their tribes. For the most part, I don’t hire professional models, I just find them in random places—art shows, car repair shops, weddings, etc. I’m always on the lookout for models. Whenever possible I like to get the models on location in a beautiful setting, but that’s not always possible with conflicting schedules. I couldn’t get my main model for Pitamakan to Wyoming like I had wanted, so I had her come model for me at my home in Utah on a barrel instead of a horse. Later, with a little artistic license, I added the horse. It actually worked out really well—almost perfectly.