Frederic Remington was an American painter, illustrator, sculptor and writer who specialized in depictions of the American Old West. Remington's works are known for depicting the Western United States in the last quarter of the 19th-century, featuring such images as cowboys, American Indians, and the United States Cavalry.
Currently on loan and displayed on the Museum balcony is a set of Frederic Remington prints as well as a Remington sculpture. Credited as the start of his artistic career this collection is an assemblage of original, vintage Harper’s Weekly wood block engravings. The artwork was drawn from an engraving collection owned by Lee Silliman, of Missoula, Montana. These full page and double page images encompass the Wild West that Remington wanted to preserve.
As the Craig Press highlights in their article, “Reminton’s dynamic images in the exhibit include scenes such as: a desperate Indian battle, cowboys fighting a prairie fire, a pronghorn antelope hunt, scouts tracking renegade Apaches, the arrest of a whiskey smuggler, a picket soldier ambushed, hunters packing game on a rebellious mustang, a Mexican bull fight, and a cavalry unit caught in a sandstorm. Many of these engravings feature the western horse convincingly depicted in motion – for which Remington was the first artist to render accurately (thanks to high speed photography, although Remington would not acknowledge such).
This exhibit of original Remington engravings, handsomely matted and framed in black mesquite hard wood moldings, will be on display at the Museum of Northwest Colorado from June 8 through the end of the year."