Original Painting of Indian with Drawn Bow on Horseback [SOLD]

Quincy Tahoma (1917-1956) Water Edge loved action scenes and painted many such scenes during his career.  This one is a good illustration of a Navajo man with drawn bow and arrow aimed at something unseen by the viewer.  The horse is very actively running.  Are they being chased by an enemy or perhaps a bison?  It is obvious they are running away from danger.

Tahoma was especially talented in drawing horses in any stage of action—running, rearing, or fighting.  He was also adept at the fine art of illustrating the human body.  The duo in this painting are the only objects to be viewed.  There is no background, very little grasses in foreground and a couple birds overhead, but the emphasis is on the rider and horse.

The painting is signed Tahoma and dated ’51 in lower right along with his traditional cartouche illustrating the next scene where the horse is still running. Tahoma almost always signed his name and a title of the paining on verso but this painting was delivered to us framed and the back of it is not visible so we do not know if he signed the back or not.

Condition: appears to be in original condition but has not been examined out of the frame.

Provenance: from the estate of a collector from New York

Recommended Reading:  Quincy Tahoma, the Life and Legacy of a Navajo Artist by Charnell Havens