Lance M. Foster Studio

Mural Defaced

2012-01-08T04:12:00.001-08:00

http://helenair.com/news/local/mural-on-downtown-walking-mall-defaced-with-swastika/article_f7a87da4-39c1-11e1-8a30-0019bb2963f4.html

Helena-Related Images by Lance Foster

2011-12-05T06:09:00.001-08:00

I live in Helena, Montana, have since I was a little kid, though I went away starting in college, to get educated and see some of the world...and then I came home. Now that I am done with the "Palimpsest Murals" (Dragon Gate, etc. downtown by the yellow trolley), I am thinking about some new inspiration for some work focusing on this place. Here are some images specific to Helena...a variety, from sketches and cartoons, to photos and paintings...

I also did a walking map of the Rodney Street Neighborhood where I live, but I haven't scanned it yet.The following image is a page from a graphic novel collaboration by several artists, and this is one of my contributions. It's about Manhattan, not about Helena, but what the heck, I just wanted to show you anyways...

Winter is the Time of Storytelling

2011-12-01T06:46:00.000-08:00

Winter is the traditional time for storytelling for most Native American tribes, including mine, the Ioway. From the first snow until the snakes wake up in the spring, because the traditions are that the snakes are guardians of the sacred myths and will bite you if they overhear your telling the stories.

Illustration: "Only Stories" by Lance Foster

The Iowa Indians (or Ioway Indians) lived in Iowa for ages untold. Iowa culture and history was passed on though stories. Stories might be of the long-ago time or of prophecies for the future. The stories told people how to live in this world and how to prepare for the next one. In "Only Stories," by Ioway artist Lance M. Foster (Hengruh: "Oldest Son"), it is winter, the traditional time of telling stories. At this time, snakes, the protectors of stories, were asleep and would not hear the stories they were told to defend by Wakanda, God. Here two families are visiting the warmth of their lodge, the chakiruthan. One man is telling a story of the past as well as a story of the future. The time of the past, of the coming of the Ioway clan ancestors, becomes the story of the future, the coming of a strange group of bearded whitemen with machines. Finally, the end of time becomes the beginning of time. In this way, everything becomes a circle and things are made right again. This is the way things have been and will be. This is what the stories tell us. As hard as it may be to believe, can we be certain they are..."Only Stories?"

I created this mini-graphic novel version of one of our Ioway tribal stories, about the origin of the Medicine Dance.

For the rest, go to http://ioway.nativeweb.org/iowaylibrary/mankanye_washi_1.htm
Click the numbers at the bottom of the page to get to the next page.

"Palimpsest" Mural Series Celebration

2011-11-17T00:10:00.001-08:00

The article in the Helena Independent Record about the opening of the mural yesterday (1 pm, Wed., Nov. 16, 2011). It was cold but sunny, and a couple of dozen folks showed up to help celebrate and learn about the murals. Hot Oolong tea and fortune cookies supplied by Yat Son Chinese restaurant in East Helena kept folks warm-- thanks!

Public art keeps Chinatown memory

By MARGA LINCOLN, Independent Record | Posted: Thursday, November 17, 2011
Photos by Eliza Wiley, Independent Record

Lance Foster stands under a gateway entitled ‘Sometimes I Feel Like Chinese Take Out’ as he explains his thought process of each mural he painted.

Memories of a once-bustling Chinatown in Helena are the inspiration for the newest public art murals on the Trolley Block of the Downtown Walking Mall.
Mural artist Lance Foster recalled his childhood growing up in Helena and how much he loved to visit downtown.

First, catching the eye is his mural “Dragon Gate,” which features a bold green dragon stretching up a red archway or gate, next to the Windbag Saloon. On its backside is “Memory Wall,” which gives a view of the once-thriving block and its busy shops — Wing Shing Grocery, Yat Son Noodle Parlor, House of Wong and others. All traces of that vital neighborhood were erased by urban renewal projects decades ago. Foster also painted a portrait of Wong See Q, which he says represents the workers who labored here and on the railroad.

A second Foster gateway depicts a Chinese carry-out food box, whimsically titled, “Sometimes I Feel Like Chinese Take Out.”

On the backside of it is “Dorothy’s Room,” depicting the round red bed of Helena’s last madam, Big Dorothy. Her brothel was next door in the current Windbag Saloon building.
A few steps deeper in this alley is a final gateway, called “Urban Renewal, 1973-1977,” which depicts T.O.K. Garage, one of the places Foster remembers fondly. It stood where the Lewis and Clark Library is today.

Foster named the series of murals, “Palimpsest: Memory that has been erased and re-written.”

The word means a surface that was erased, then reused, leaving a faint and incomplete trace of the old, Foster said.

A crowd of art lovers gathers behind the ‘Dragon Gate’ as artist Lance Foster explains the opposing side’s mural Wednesday on the Trolley Block of the Downtown Walking Mall. Foster was commissioned by the Helena Public Art Committee to paint the gateways on the north side of the Windbag Saloon.

A few former neighborhood residents joined officials at the Wednesday dedication of the new art installations. For them, it was a bittersweet event.

Diane Langenfus, whose family ran the House of Wong, said “I grew up down here.” Like many in the neighborhood, they lived above their business. “This is the playground we had as children,” she said, gesturing toward the former busy neighborhood street.
While she is moved that the murals honor her former neighborhood, there is sadness over what was lost. Quoting Helena writer Flora Wong, Langenfus said, “You took my home and my history with Urban Renewal.”

Foster, whose mother ran the Outpost Cafe, attended the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, N.M. He earned a graduate degree in landscape architecture and anthropology and teaches archaeology and art at UM-Helena.

(Source: http://helenair.com/news/local/public-art-keeps-chinatown-memory/article_cdbc4e7c-10e9-11e1-8f7d-001cc4c002e0.html)

Urban Renewal

2011-10-30T07:25:00.000-07:00

The fifth and final mural of the St. Louis Block murals is now complete, as of last week. I wasn't sure if I would succeed in a race against the winter weather, but fate was kind and I worked hard.

The final mural is called "Urban Renewal, 1973-1977" and is painted in the same style and mostly monochromatic palette used for the "Memory Wall."

The source photo used as the departure point for the painting was a historic photo of the old T.O.K. Garage at the end of South Main, about where the Lewis and Clark Public Library is now (source here, along with a discussion of the demolition for Urban Renewal).

The background of the stained concrete was integrated into the painting, with some areas left sketchy and some fully rendered and detailed, to reflect the idea of erasure, disappearance, and memory.

Finally, the series of five murals, each mural with its own title, also has a single umbrella title for the murals, "Palimpsest." This unifies all of the murals on the St. Louis Block. And the information about the sponsors was painted on as well, on the lower left side.

What does "Palimpsest" mean? As I wrote on the wall of this last mural:

A surface on which something was written,
then erased,
then reused to write something new,
leaving faint, incomplete traces of the old.

The Helena "Palimpsest" Mural Series, St. Louis Block, Last Chance Gulch:

1. "Dragon Gate"
2. "Memory Wall: The Historic Chinese Community of Helena"
3. "Sometimes I Feel Like Chinese Takeout"
4. "Dorothy's Room"
5. "Urban Renewal, 1973-1977"

Re-painting Dorothy's Room

2011-10-30T06:58:00.000-07:00

Well, unfortunately the sign peeled from the wall, even though adhesive was used as well as two coats of polyurethane over that. The employees at the Windbag during one of their breaks watched it slowly peel away. Maybe it was the temperature, or the uneven nature of the concrete, but it was agreed that there was no point in trying to reapply it if it peeled even when new.

So instead, four headlines were picked from regional newspapers when Dorothy's closed, and I painted those instead. Only the headlines were used. I sure didn't want to paint every single word in the articles themselves! And the weather was starting now to drop into below freezing temperatures.

One idea had been to paint Dorothy's portrait on the left side. There are photos in the Windbag that some believe to be Dorothy. But after further research at the Montana Historical Society, a letter from 2006 was found, from Dorothy's niece to the Society, which denied those photos were of her aunt. The niece said Dorothy did not like photos of her and did not allow them to be taken. Only the one from her high school yearbook photo in the 1920s and her booking photo are of Dorothy.

So who is that other woman in the photos in the Windbag cases at the back of the room? It may very well be Dorothy's predecessor, Ida, of Ida's Rooms. Ida is the one who sold the business to Dorothy in the late 1950s (ca. 1956-57).

Painting the Mural: "Dorothy's Room"

2011-10-03T23:05:00.000-07:00

A lot of people think that "Big Dorothy" operated her bordello in the Windbag. But it was really upstairs, above the Windbag, with the entrance in the rear at 19 1/2. A lot also apparently think, based in part on the Windbag's "Old West" graphics, that it was back in the 1800s that the place was a bordello. But the building, the St. Louis block, was built as a drygoods store back in 1882. And it wasn't until 1927 during the Prohibition that Ida ran her bordello called "Ida's Rooms" in the building. And it wasn't until the late 1950s that Dorothy bought the business and renamed it "Dorothy's Rooms," which was closed down in 1973.

My painting shows the infamous round red bed at Dorothy's, based on a photo from "Helena As She Was" (helenahistory.org). I simplified it, added the ashtray with burning cigarette, and tweaked the colors to be more lurid looking, inspired by Van Gogh's "The Night Café." He said: "I have tried to express the terrible passions of humanity by means of red and green. ...In my picture of the Night Café I have tried to express the idea that the café is a place where one can ruin oneself, go mad or commit a crime." Notice not only the burning cigarette (and everyone smoked in those days) but the marks on the bed like someone was just sitting or reclining there. It is called "Dorothy's Room" (singular) rather than Dorothy's Rooms. The houseplant is a dracaena marginata, or "dragon tree," not "palm trees" as some speculated, and was in the original photo. It is an interesting coincidence that this "dragon tree" thus links with the Dragon Wall!

Above is a replica-enlargement of a 1973 article in the Walla Walla, Washington newspaper on the closing of the establishment and the death of Dorothy soon after. It was printed out by Signs Now in downtown Helena and applied with adhesive. I decided to make the article very big, to look like a crime novel in a way, and although some might find the fact that the article has a missing section annoying, it also reminds us that we really never know the full story about anything.

Local TV News does story on the murals

2011-09-30T20:10:00.000-07:00

Helena history murals

on downtown walking mall

By Ryan Whalen

For several months now, local artist Lance Foster
has been using his spare time to put up a series
of murals in the downtown walking mall.

Foster was selected by the city to do the project two years
ago. It's now nearing completion. Foster is focusing on
what he remembers of the area as a child – namely the
Chinatown area of downtown Helena and Big Dorothy's
rooms, a long-closed bordello.

He says it's his way of celebrating all parts of Helena
history, even if they were fringe elements of society in
their time.

"It's part of who we are and as it says on the mural of
Dorothy, any town that doesn't recognize its colorful side
is a boring town to live in,” says Foster.

The murals are painted on entranceways in an alley off
of the walking mall. The door frames allowed Foster a little
fun – you can have your picture taken as if you're on
Dorothy's bed or in a Chinese take-out box.

Painting the Mural: "Sometimes I Feel Like Chinese Takeout"

2011-09-20T19:34:00.000-07:00

Start of Chinese Take-out Mural, painted the week of Sept. 16. Still to go: finishing the wire handle, the red characters on the carton, the title, and some touches of color here and there.

The wall completed. "Sometimes I feel like Chinese takeout" is a reference to this location being the hotspot for fantastic Chinese food for decades in Helena until Urban Renewal tore down the restaurants in the early 1970s. But also you can stand in the opening and -really- feel like you are Chinese takeout, and get your photo taken there to prove it!

Painting the Mural: Memory Wall

2011-09-20T18:54:00.000-07:00

Behind the Dragon Wall, I painted the Memory Wall. I do not have the sequence on this one, as the photographer was away at that time and my camera was out of commission. It was begun Aug. 18 and completed Sept. 15. School began Aug. 29 and from then on I could only paint three mornings a week, so it took more time than otherwise it would have.

Helena once had a thriving Chinese community (aka Helena Chinatown) which reached from where the library is now, over to Reeder's Alley and up to the Chinese gardens at the split to Unionville and Grizzly Gulch. There were hundreds of Chinese that worked and lived here between 1865 through the 1890s, but they began to leave over the later decades until by the 1950s there were only a fraction of what there were previously. Abuse and racism took their toll. There had been Chinese physicians and herbalists, restaurants, stores, groceries, hotels, laundries, gaming houses. By the 1970s, there were pretty much only three descendant families left in Helena, to all accounts.

The completed Memory Wall.
The art style is influenced by the Ashcan School of urban New York during the early 1900s and Muriel Wolle's paintings of the mining camps in Montana... I wanted it to be intimate, familiar, gritty, industrial. Wong See Q. was a leader in the Helena Chinese community.

List of historical sites in Helena with Chinese heritage.
These are the ones remembered by the descendant families still connected to Helena. There were once hundreds of Chinese and their businesses, most now lost to memory.

Helena in Chinese characters.
Written Chinese is not alphabetic, each character represents an idea or word, but can also represent a syllable. Each of these three characters represents one of the three syllables in Helena, although it is pronounced differently in different Chinese languages, such as Cantonese (the Chinese language spoken by the great majority of Helena's Chinese population historically) and Mandarin (a northern language used as the common language by most in modern China).

Painting the Mural: Dragon Gate: Week 2

2011-08-23T13:12:00.000-07:00

I continued painting the Dragon Gate during week 2.

Mon., Aug. 22: I began painting the large fields of color. Dark green for the head and the mountainscape (South Hills and Mount Helena). Pale green for the body and mane. Yellow-orange for the whiskers, claws, eyebrows, spine, and tail tuft on the dragon, and the Pearl of Wisdom/Sun. A longer day than usual, but felt good about getting the dragon's primary colors on. 5 hours.

Tues., Aug. 23: Used a sort of gray-purple-black to outline the head, eyes, teeth/mouth, talons, and the rest of the dragon. Really makes it "pop out" at last. Added another coat of reddish-brown to fill in some spaces and thin areas. 4 hours.

Now comes a critical point in painting, as in all paintings. Deciding when it is done. Not doing enough means it looks unfinished to viewers...and is incompletely realized and unsatisfactory to the artist. BUT...You can also go too far and add too much and ruin a painting that way too. So the next day or two, and I have to be careful. I know I want to add to the clouds (cream gold with pink scrolling), and also add scales on the dragon. The scales are tricky, with so many to do, and they need to look uniform.

Wed., Aug. 24: Today, the scales. Trying to paint so many uniformly-sized things has a lot of potential for things to go wrong. So I cut a guide out of an old plastic lid. It worked pretty well, although it was slow and took a long time. I added some green lines along the back and limbs which popped it out further. I added a creamy yellow-white over parts of the cool white areas which warmed up the clouds and picked out the teeth and eyes. 5 hours.

Thurs., Aug. 25: Finished the pearl/sun, talons/wrinkles, clouds, touch-up various places (drips, streaks). Picked up varnish from paint store. 4 hours.

Fri., Aug. 26: Signed and dated the mural. Final Clearcoat Sealant; applied two coats, with 2 hours drying time in between them. 5 hours, with 3 of those actual working hours, and 2 drying hours.

FINISHED with the Dragon Gate, mural #1 of the series! Next will be the Chinese Memory Wall, to be started next week.

Painting the Mural: Dragon Gate: Week 1

2011-08-23T04:08:00.000-07:00

I started on the mural a little over a week ago. This is the progress so far.

Fri., Aug. 12: Powerwashed the three gates (I keep wanting to say "arches" but they are not arches, just a series of gated supports along a walkway). Allowed to dry fully over the weekend. The site attracts a lot of grafitti, which will be an ongoing issue I suspect. 1 hour.

Mon., Aug. 15: Got supplies from Columbia, along with arranging for barriers and tape, etc. Had to go with supervisor as she has to sign off on every order personally (city process). 1 hour. Scaffold brought on site by city.

Tues., Aug. 16: Applied Loxon conditioner today as a sealer and primer using a roller on the surfaces to be painted, front and back of first gate. It is a clear coating, which means you can paint right over it. Certain colors will cover it satisfactorily, like white and the reddish background. For brighter colors I will need to apply white primer in those areas first. Ordered some more paint and do some further design tinkering at home this afternoon. There is a difference between paper/digital stuff and the REAL physical environment :-) 2 hours.

Wed., Aug. 17: Blocked in most of background, a reddish color like red clay. Some white applied in areas of clouds and part of dragon. 4 hours.

Thurs., Aug. 18: Draw dragon, all freehand directly in paint (magenta). I had to change the pose a little from the original design because of the discontinuity in the concrete wall at the top which would distort it otherwise. I had originally thought of gridding it, but I like the freshness and vitality of a freehand line. Got the dragon, pearl (used 5-gallon lid as template), mountains, clouds (with swirls) drawn in now on the dragon gate. 5 hours.

Fri., Aug. 19: Some minor vandalism wiped off and I repainted over it. Whited-in areas of dragon and pearl, in preparation for next week's color application. It looks pretty good so far! This is all taking longer than I thought. 4 hours.

(Thanks to Carol Montgomery of the Helena Public Art Committee for the photos!)

Next week: More colors

Grenois

2011-07-24T04:36:00.000-07:00

Posted in 1870-1879 on April 2nd, 2009 by

Lance Foster

Dog Gulch Standard, June 5, 1873

Edward Grenois Found Murdered

Dog Gulch - The halfbreed Edward Grenois, age 28, was found murdered this morning, lying behind the Pearl Handle Saloon, shot three times, once in the back and twice in the head. Harvey Schissler is currently the primary suspect. His whereabouts are currently unknown, though it is said his trail leads north. Evidence is being carefully gathered, given the respected position of his father, Jacob Schissler, proprieter of the Mahcomet Trading Post.

Well-liked among most of the Gulch’s citizens, Grenois had claimed to be a grandson of Pierre-August Grenois. He quickly became a well-known figure in the area, and always dressed dapper in his frock coat and marten hat. He arrived in Dog Gulch last year, during the 1869 rush, and made a placer claim on the Gulch near the site of old Apekuni House, which had been founded by his grandfather. Edward Grenois worked the claim for a time, and got some color, but soon came to prefer the amusements of the dance halls and the company of ladies. Grenois also was said to be spending much time in the local land office.

Earlier this year, Grenois was seen by several people arguing in the street with his close friend Harvey Schissler, the son of Jacob Schissler, with whom he often visited the places of entertainment in Dog Gulch. But they made up soon after, often retiring to the Schissler home after a night on the town. Mr. and Mrs. Jacob Schissler had taken Grenois into their home during an illness, during which time he became part of the Schissler family and was treated as a brother to Harvey. They were boon companions in all occasions.

Everyone noted how Mrs. Schissler doted on the young men, and Mr. Schissler often talked about employing Grenois at the family business, the Mahcomet Trading Post. Who could have foreseen such a turn of events.

It is a tragedy indeed when such a fine family is involved in such a situation as this. The people of Dog Gulch hope for a speedy resolution so that the family may find peace such as possible in these tragic circumstances.

Pierre-Auguste Grenois

Posted in 1810-1819 on April 10th, 2009 by

Lance Foster

Pierre-Auguste Grenois was a metis furtrapper who passed through the Greenway area in 1793, returning to establish Apekuni House to trade with the Blackfeet in 1795. The drawing is from 1812, by an itinerant peddler, artist, and preacher by the name of “Father Badger” Jones; Jones wandered through the region, often shouting to himself as “moved by the Holy Spirit,” and was considered “touched” and was thus left alone by the Native tribes. In 1813, Grenois died of smallpox and Apekuni House was abandoned.

A Little More About Me and Art

2011-05-28T09:37:00.000-07:00

I am teaching an online art appreciation course for the next month or so. One of my students asked me about my degree in anthropology and how it connected to art. This was my answer:

"I actually have been an artist since before I was five-- back then I specialized in drawing lions and cyclops, and I loved the art of Dr. Seuss! My interest in other cultures, mythology, and art has been with me all my life.

You know in grade school and high school, you have "the nerd," "the jock," etc., and "the artist." I was one of the kids people knew as "the artist" (we didn't even have the word "nerd" way back here in Helena then!) But I was also interested in different world cultures and my tribal roots. I also won a prize for my drawing in Electrum back then, and would rather draw in my notebook than do math I thought I'd be a professional artist one day. I drew American Indian stuff, dinosaurs, animals, monsters, sci-fi stuff, etc.

When I went to Missoula in the fall of 1978 (I graduated Helena High in 1978 spring), I took a bunch of different classes, including studio arts. The big thing at the time was modern art there, which I really disliked, as I wanted to do wildlife art, western art, science fiction-fantasy, and religious art. But the art department was unfriendly to realistic art at the time, so after fighting the teachers, I bailed on that idea. The next year (1979-80), I stayed home in Helena, I went to Carroll, tried a few things, didn't like it, and mainly devoted my time to painting and drawing.

I am part American Indian and was interested in studying the Native American tribes, culture and history at the time, including the arts. There was an old gent named Eddie Barbeau here in Helena back then. He owned the property where the Town Pump is now, over by Costco. He had a barn, house, and other stuff there, and he also set up tipis. He was a friend of the family, and we used to help him with Indian projects, like painting the tipis. So for me, Indian stuff and art stuff has always been connected.

In 1980-81 I attended the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Mainly I studied painting there, but also did some sculpture, ceramics, and jewelry. But they didn't have a BA so I went to U of Montana in Missoula, and finally got my BA in Anthropology as that allowed me to study both culture and the arts, without being dragged into the abstract art stuff in the art department there. It wasn't my cup of tea.

But fashions change in art. That was thirty years ago, and realism has returned in fashion. I also have learned to appreciate the abstract (or better-said, "nonrepresentational" art) forms more, so I very well understand others when they say "Is THAT art?? I could do THAT! A little kid could do THAT!" But I have learned myself since my twenties more about that kind of art, and so that is some of what I will share with you.

I have two Masters graduate degrees, one in Anthropology/Archaeology, specializing in material culture and art, and a separate Masters in Landscape Architecture, specializing in landscape history. Landscape Architecture is a design degree, and having a graduate degree in a design field is what enables me to teach a design/art course. I am still an artist too. I will be painting a mural downtown here in Helena this summer for example. You can also see some of my art at my art blog."

One-Minute Video Sample of My Art

2011-05-10T07:17:00.000-07:00

A one-minute video sample of my art.

Update: St. Louis Block: New "Dragon Gate" and "Memory Wall"

2011-03-26T18:41:00.000-07:00

Through continuing consultation with the descendants of Helena's historic Chinese community, I have re-designed portions of the mural, including the new "Dragon Gate" and the "Memory Wall" on the first arch.

A new Dragon Gate image for the entry of the St. Louis Block mural. [Note, Oct. 11, 2011: The building is not the Boston Block, which is south one building, but the St. Louis Block, named for the St. Louis Hotel which was connected at the rear of the building when it was first built.] Rather than the blue Ming Dynasty plate with dragon and phoenix first proposed, I re-designed this entry arch/wall after consultation with members of Helena's Chinese community descendants. See the older design with blue plate and other elements here(the Dorothy wall is to be moved, the Feng Shui wall replaced, and a new Memory Wall instead, as described below). I am moving the Dorothy wall from its location in the first design (click the link above), from right behind this entry wall, back one archway to where the "feng shui" wall was originally, facing the stairs at the rear. This is more appropriate since the Chinese elements will be kept together conceptually and visually this way and the real Dorothy's Rooms entrance was facing the rear of the building anyways.

"DRAGON GATE"

Below is the new Dragon Gate, as proposed [The final dragon as painted, looks a bit different, in order to avoid the discontinuity in the wall above], followed by source material excerpts on the Chinese Dragon with its symbolism and traditions.

In Chinese art, dragons are typically portrayed as long, scaled, serpentine creatures with four legs. In yin and yang terminology, a dragon is yang and complements a yin fenghuang "Chinese phoenix".

In contrast to European dragons, which are considered evil, Chinese dragons traditionally symbolize potent and auspicious powers, particularly control over water, rainfall, hurricane, and floods. The dragon is also a symbol of power, strength, and good luck.

...The 5-clawed dragon was assigned to represent the Emperor while the 4-clawed and 3-clawed dragons were assigned to the commoners.

...The Han Dynasty scholar Wang Fu recorded Chinese myths that long dragons had nine anatomical resemblances.

The people paint the dragon's shape with a horse's head and a snake's tail. Further, there are expressions as 'three joints' and 'nine resemblances' (of the dragon), to wit: from head to shoulder, from shoulder to breast, from breast to tail. These are the joints; as to the nine resemblances, they are the following: his horns resemble those of a stag, his head that of a camel, his eyes those of a demon, his neck that of a snake, his belly that of a clam (shen, 蜃), his scales those of a carp, his claws those of an eagle, his soles those of a tiger, his ears those of a cow. Upon his head he has a thing like a broad eminence (a big lump), called [chimu] (尺木). If a dragon has no [chimu], he cannot ascend to the sky.

Further sources give variant lists of the nine animal resemblances. Sinologist Henri Doré lists these characteristics of an authentic dragon: "The horns of a deer. The head of a camel. A demon's eyes. The neck of a snake. A tortoise's viscera. A hawk's claws. The palms of a tiger. A cow's ears. And it hears through its horns, its ears being deprived of all power of hearing." He notes that, "Others state it has a rabbit's eyes, a frog's belly, a carp's scales." The anatomy of other legendary creatures, including the chimera and manticore, is similarly amalgamated from fierce animals.

...Many pictures of oriental dragons show a flaming pearl under their chin. The pearl is associated with wealth, good luck, and prosperity.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_dragon)

...and further...

Some individuals suffer from the misconception that the Chinese Dragon is a symbol of evil. This erroneous belief stems from the mythology of the western world where the dragon was thought to abduct maidens, wreak havoc on the populace, steal gold and destroy villages. In the mediaeval context the Western dragon was often the symbol of Satan incarnate. This is not so in the dragons of the orient. In fact it is just the opposite. The dragons of China and Japan are almost exclusively benevolent mythological creatures. In fact they are so different in nature from Western Dragons that it may be more reasonable to consider them as dissimilar creatures, rather than as the same creature interpreted differently.

The Chinese call the dragon 'lung' (long) because it is deaf. It is the largest of scaly animals, and it has the following nine characteristics. Its head is like a camels, its horns like a deer's, its eyes like a hare's, its ears like a bull's, its neck like an iguana's, its belly like a frog's, its scales like those of a carp, its paws like a tiger's, and its claws like an eagle's. It has nine times nine scales, it being the extreme of a lucky number.

On each side of the dragons mouth are whiskers, under its chin or floating just out of reach is a bright pearl, on the top of its head the 'poh shan' or foot rule, without which it cannot ascend to heaven.

...The Dragon Pearl
The luminous ball or pearl often depicted under the dragon's chin or seen to be spinning in the air, pursued by one or two dragons is thought to be a symbolic representation of the 'sacred pearl' of wisdom or yang energy. Pearl symbolism, like lunar symbolism arises from Daoist roots and the connections, are extremely complex. This pearl can be said to stand most often for 'truth' and 'life' - perhaps even everlasting life which is made available to those who perceive the truth and attain enlightenment.

The dragon's pearl can also be thought of as a symbol for universal Qi the progenitor of all energy and creation. The dragons seem to be depicted in attitudes of pursuit. He is seen to be reaching out eagerly to clutch at the elusive object, mouth open in anticipation and eyes bulging with anticipation of achieving the prize afforded by clutching the pearl.

In connection with the dragon the pearl has been called the image of thunder, of the moon, of the sun, of the egg emblem of the dual influences of nature, and the 'pearl of potentiality'. The pearl is most often depicted as a spiral or a globe. In some paintings it is sometimes red, sometimes gold, sometimes the bluish white of a true pearl. The pearl is often accompanied by little jagged flashes that seem to spark out from it, like flames; and it almost always has an appendage in the form of a small undulating sprout, not unlike the first young shoot from a bean.

In Daoist concepts the moon, pearls, dragons and serpents are inextricably linked. Like the snake that is reborn when it sheds its skin, the moon is reborn each month, and both are symbols of immortality.
(http://www.ninedragonbaguazhang.com/dragons.htm)

"MEMORY WALL: HELENA'S CHINESE COMMUNITY"

The originally proposed feng shui wall is removed. Instead, a "Memory Wall" with photos and names from Helena's Chinese community, Chinese-owned businesses and sites, and one of its first Chinese citizens, Wong See Q. The new Memory Wall will be located on the entry arch right behind this new Dragon Gate. The new Memory Wall (working draft, with additional sites/businesses to be added) and the facing arch with "Chinese Takeout" is below.

Cougar and Ponderosa Pine

2010-12-16T08:04:00.000-08:00

A cougar's surly glare on a nice winter's day along the Continental Divide in the mountains near Helena. The cougar picks its way in the melting snow, among Ponderosa pines growing a little higher in elevation because of the sunny southern aspect of the mountain slope. Across the valley the slopes at a similar elevation are covered with Douglas-fir because they face the cooler northern aspect and the snow stays longer there too.

Wildlife Art, by Lance M. Foster

2010-09-10T15:41:00.000-07:00

I enjoy making realistic wildlife art too. Here are some examples.

American Bison (Bison bison)

oil, 8 1/2 x 11 in.

Grizzly Bear (Ursus arctos horribilis)

Colored pencil, 8 1/2 x 11 in.

American Kestrel (Falco sparverius)

Watercolor, 17 x 20 in.

American Bobcat (Felis rufus) aka (Lynx rufus)

Colored pencil, 10 x 12 "

Timberline

2010-08-10T04:31:00.000-07:00

This is the finished "Timberline" painting I was working on in the newspaper article.

Niwakanda

2010-08-09T04:10:00.000-07:00

Chexita Ichexi Ch'ehi

2010-08-09T04:06:00.000-07:00

Morning Prayer

2010-08-09T04:03:00.000-07:00

Prehistoric Peacemaking

2010-08-09T03:58:00.000-07:00

This is an oil painting I did a number of years ago. It portrays two precontact Native American groups in Montana, ready for war, but choosing to make peace instead. The large shields which covered more of the body were used previous to the introduction of the horse.

1996 Mural in Nigeria

2010-02-22T17:31:00.000-08:00

The proprietor of Ewe Nla (Yoruba language for "Big Leaf") and me in 1996. I was working on an environmental sanitation research project, and staying with Mike and Mary Warren in the town of Ara, Oyo State, Nigeria. I painted this mural (this is just a portion) using charcoal and bits of leftover house paint, as a favor for the Warrens and the town. The woman is a Mami Wata (river goddess).

Ioway Straight Dancer

2010-02-22T10:14:00.001-08:00

A color sketch I did for my cousin Mike Graalfs the other day.

Mankanye Washi: Graphic Novelette

2009-09-06T07:58:00.000-07:00

Be sure and check out my mini-graphic novelette, "Mankanye Washi (Medicine Dance Origin)", a true legend of the Ioway people!

Water Spirit

2009-09-04T14:18:00.001-07:00

St. Louis Block Mural Proposal in Helena: "Palimpsest"

2009-08-10T12:42:00.000-07:00

I have decided to try and do some public art projects, starting with a proposal for a public art project here in Helena at the Boston Block downtown. It's my first attempt at such a proposal. The project requires a one million dollar insurance policy for some reason, which I don't have (not being a big professional design firm) nor do I currently have the money for, being a local starving artist ;-)...but if I were selected, I would have money for the policy! :-) Anyways, I thought it would be worth a try, and I am posting my idea and images here so you can see what my idea is.

“Palimpsest.” St. Louis Block Public Art Project Proposal
Lance M. Foster, Aug. 2009

[Note, Oct. 11, 2011: The building is not the Boston Block, which is south one building, but the St. Louis Block, named for the St. Louis Hotel which was connected at the rear of the building when it was first built.]

1. Letter of interest. The letter is limited to one page in length and should explain the artist’s interest in the project.

I am sure you have many outstanding and excellent proposals from professional teams and experienced muralists to sort through and select from. As a lifelong Helenan and kid who learned how to do art in Helena's schools, I am only happy to have been allowed to submit my own ideas for the project. I remember very well downtown Helena just before, and then during, Urban Renewal. I remember going to see “Fantasia” at the Marlow Theater and eating fried shrimp from Yat-Son’s Chinese Restaurant. When I was 6, we were trying to find a new place to live, and Mom called “Dorothy’s Rooms,” on the chance it had rooms for rent. Dorothy herself answered the phone, replying “Oh honey, this isn’t the kind of place you want to have your family live.” Places are palimpsests, layers of time and sometimes only a fragment remaining to show what was there originally. But there is nothing left of either the Marlow or Yat-Son’s, and while Dorothy’s and the House of Wong still stand as buildings, their functions have changed and many do not even know of their former iconic status. The erasing of former history, especially those groups considered “less desirable,” in this case the Chinese and the prostitutes, was a value embedded in Urban Renewal. My interest in the project is very much a part of my personal history and memory of Helena and the importance of remembering EVERYTHING.

2. Current resume. If submitted as a team, a current resume should be submitted for each team member.

Adjunct professor, Fine Arts, UM-Helena College of Technology
Graduate, University of Montana and Iowa State University
Artist-In-Residence, Lewis and Clark County Historical Society

3. Project description accompanied by visual representation (drawings, maquette, photographs, and/or computer presentation, materials list and timeline.

Materials list given in 4b below. Timeline: Initiate project on announcement of selection (August 2009), completion in one month’s time, end of September 2009.

IMAGES FOLLOWING:

Arch 1, west surface (Ceramic; Chinese characters for “Helena”)

Arch 1, east surface (Dorothy’s Rooms)

Arch 2, west surface (Chinese takeout carton)

Arch 2, east surface (Feng Shui gate)

Arch 3, west surface (Urban Renewal)

4. Materials and installation: Describe the anticipated materials and installation process. Include information that will help facilitate the artistic integrity of your work:

a. Describe your design concept.

Site-specific to within a stone’s throw of the site- even more site specific than “Helena” or “downtown.” In my project, I propose to restore a part of the palimpsest of community memory, symbolized by the Chinese and Dorothy’s Rooms. The interaction of the Chinese and Brothels in Helena, and their image in popular culture: urban renewal, Chinese feng shui gate as a guardian to the inner world of the Chinese and redlight communities, Chinese takeout carton as both popular stereotype and community memory (House of Wong across street and Yat Son next door), the infamous round bed and article about Big Dorothy—all behind a façade of dragon and phoenix representing Yin and Yang, matching the color scheme of the immediate environs. The casual observer sees only what the community wants to be seen. The arched doorways symbolize entrance into the past through stereotyped images: the Chinese takeout carton, ceramic vessel (dragon and phoenix), and feng shui gate, in the case of Helena’s Chinese population, and the famous round bed and newspaper clipping, in the case of Dorothy’s Rooms. The huge missing sections of images represent the fact that though we think we know the facts, the truth, we never really do, not unless we ourselves were part of the hidden community ourselves. We believe we enter the past, but there is always the greater part the remains unknown. The iconic image of the garage and car during Urban Renewal reminds us of that process that still reverberates to today.

b. Describe the materials to be used in your project.

Acrylic paints

c. Describe the installation process.

Grid on arches
Transfer designs within grid, use of step ladders
Paint

d. Describe any special equipment needed and maintenance required.

Ladders, rollers
Maintenance: Annual spraying/washing off salts from paint surfaces

5. Preliminary budget (typed, one page maximum): Include a cost estimate for all facets, including but not limited to artist fees, insurance, travel expenses, materials and supplies costs, fabrication and installation costs.

COST ESTIMATE
Materials and supplies - $3000 ($1000 of materials donated by artist)
Insurance - $200
Travel – Helena resident

6. Up to five images of previous work (slides or jpeg files on CD-ROM), accompanied by a descriptive list.

IMAGE 1: “The Guardian.” Acrylic on canvas. Many cultures believe that powerful, even frightening, images of angels and deities serve as protectors and guardians of holy places. On one side, there is an approaching summer thunderstorm (protection of the sacred) with the eagle, and on the other is the night sky of winter (purification).
[Media: Acrylic on canvas]

IMAGE 2: "Ishjinki Vincent Itaro Waduje wok’un ke (Trickster gave his friend Vincent an ear of corn)." Acrylic on canvas. In western society, the artist is thought of as a marginal figure, and in the worst cases, prone to eccentricity and even madness. In traditional societies, the artist is an integral part of social life, expressing the inherent values of the society. The Trickster is an ambivalent figure, but one of the good things that he does is cure madness. In this painting, we see what might have happened if the quintessential “mad artist” Vincent Van Gogh would have had the friendship of Trickster. After Vincent cuts off his own ear, Trickster offers him the replacement ear…of corn. And a happy and healed Vincent teases him back, with the rabbit ear sign behind his head and tsk-tsking him for the joke. And in the background, the crows of madness fly away to the sunflower/sun under the framework of the world.

IMAGE 3: “Tilth.” Media: Wood and panel board; metal toy; acrylic. Tilth is the structure of the soil, seen in the stratigraphy of the earth beneath our feet, like layers of a cake. We start reading from the oldest layer, which is buried deepest, at the bottom, and then work our way up. In this example, the oldest layer is "Nuxe" (NOO-khay: ice), laid down by the glaciers, and then "Ni" (NEE: water, the melting glaciers and erosion), then "Maya" (MAH-yah: the earth built up by the sunlight and decay of plants). Finally, the last layer includes the bodies of those ancestors, "Washige s’age" (WAH-shee-gay S-AH-gay) who have gone before. On top, as we grow our crops and make our city, do we remember the tilth of the soil, made by ages and the bodies of those who have gone on before us? The toy tractor emphasizes how transient and small we are in the scheme of things.

7. Proof of liability insurance ($1,000,000).

Forthcoming if selected

8. Include a self-addressed stamped envelope with accurate postage to ensure return of your application materials or make other arrangements to have your proposal returned to you.

Will pick them up after selection process is over.

9. Optional. Include up to three selections of support materials such as reviews, news articles, catalogues and other related information.

Article from Helena Independent Record

CONTACT INFO:

Lance M. Foster
320 E. Broadway #4
Helena, Montana 59601
406-422-5911
lancemfoster@yahoo.com

"Artistic Visions" (Helena Independent Record newspaper article)

2009-07-24T04:10:00.000-07:00

"Artistic visions", By EVE BYRON - Independent Record - 07/24/09

Clare Becker Independent Record - Lance Foster poses in his studio space off of Last Chance Gulch in front of some recent pieces. Foster's work often examines the role of the artist in society, both as outsider and as a transcendent force. Regarding the choice of bright colors in his paintings, Foster says ‘I just do what's in me to do.’

If the bold colors used by painter Lance Foster don’t grab your attention, chances are the eyes of the “The Guardian” will.

It’s a life-size painting that Foster, the new artist-in-residence at the Lewis and Clark County Historical Society, created about 30 years ago while a student at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, N.M. Foster said the dorm in which he lived was haunted; when he wasn’t in his room, students reported hearing someone getting out of bed, footsteps and the sound of a doorknob jiggling.

So he painted The Guardian, based on the Lakota warrior “Low Dog” or “He Dog,” who had fought against Gen. George Custer. Foster added power symbols, some obvious and some embedded in the painting, then hung it in the dorm room.

“The sounds were quieted,” he says with a smile.

He adds that renowned Helena painter Bob Morgan gave him a piece of advice early on that he apparently didn’t take to heart.

“He said my colors are so bright they’ll put people off. They want stuff to match their couch,” Foster recalled. “I said ‘Oh well, then no one will buy my stuff.’ I just like to paint what I like.”

Foster is as complex as his paintings, with both obvious and subtle traits that have brought him to the historical society’s space on the downtown Walking Mall. He’s a large man with a soft voice who grew up in Helena, the eldest son of Gary and Rita Foster. As a boy, he spent hours at Eddie Barbeau’s house, with its colorful teepees and painted garage, where traditional American Indian ceremonies were commonplace.

“That was a big influence on me,” said Foster, noting that his American Indian heritage includes Ioway, Yankton and Santee. “You know when you’re in school, and every class has the weird kid who’s the artist? That was me. I was always drawing pictures instead of doing school work.”

He earned a degree from the University of Montana in anthropology and Native American studies, then master’s degrees in anthropology and landscape architecture from Iowa State University. He combines those studies in his art, joking that the education allowed him to keep painting while eking out a living as a “shovel bum” (also known as an archaeologist).

“My art is all about a sense of place,” Foster said. “I’m trying to tell a story, to transform people’s ideas of place.”

Foster spent a few months in Africa doing environmental sanitation work, and a few years in Alaska with the National Park Service. He eventually landed in Hawaii, where his wife, Lisa, grew up, and Foster got a job as director of native rights, land and culture for the Office of Hawaiian affairs.

While some might wonder about a non-Hawaii native being the protector of their rights, Foster said it was a good fit because of his cultural and educational background. He grew the department from three to 13 people and they had made some significant progress in protecting artifacts and properties, but Foster said he grew tired of fighting.

“There was some heavy-duty psychic warfare going on, and my folks were getting older, so we decided to come home in 2006,” Foster said.

So these days he paints, gives historic walking tours of Helena, and is an adjunct instructor of art and archaeology at the University of Montana-Helena.

Clare Becker Independent Record - Lance Foster works on a small painting, ‘Timberline,’ in his studio on Last Chance Gulch. The large painting to his right is ‘Bohogoi,’ a work that examines the role of folklore, modern art and the four directions of the natural world. Foster says his style has similarities to stained glass.

Paul Putz, the county historic preservation officer, said it’s wonderful to have someone like Foster as an artist in residence.

“He’s an interesting addition to the scene downtown,” Putz said. “His work has a bold clarity; it’s very well rendered. His portraits are very compelling, and it’s excellent work.

“Like many artists, he has a broad view of society and its aspects, particularly in relation to aesthetics but also about the ideas.”

Foster is at the Historical Society from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, eager to do a little painting, and talk about his work, Helena history, or just about anything else. His stint is slated to run through July, but he might stick around a little longer.

“It depends on when school starts; I teach two classes — one about ghost hunting and paranormal investigations, and the other on cultural landscapes,” Foster said. “I’m still a starving artist, but I’ve got a lot to do.

“It would be fun to drive a nice car like a doctor or lawyer, but I think it’s better to be an artist, since you can get away with doing all the weird stuff.”

Clare Becker Independent Record - Foster designed a Helena T-shirt that he sells out of his studio in sizes ranging from baby to adult. Foster says his design was influenced by legendary comic artist, R. Crumb, and represents Helena in nine different landmarks including the Cathedral of St. Helena and Mount Helena.

If you go:

Lance Foster’s work is on display at the Lewis and Clark Historical Society, in the Power Block, 58 N. Last Chance Gulch.

The museum is open Monday to Saturday from noon to 5 p.m. Foster keeps office hours Fridays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Reporter Eve Byron: eve.byron@helenair.com or 447-4076

"Genius Loci: South", in progress

2009-07-23T06:45:00.000-07:00

This is my "Genius Loci: South" painting in progress, as seen in the article from the Queen City News today; it is looking pretty conventional and acceptable, before it starts looking extreme...which is my goal!

History Center has artist-in-residence

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Lance Foster is the new artist-in-residence at the Helena/Lewis & Clark County History Center, 58 N. Last Chance Gulch, on the downtown Walking Mall (the Power Block).

Foster is at work on his “Genius Loci” series of large canvasses, which explores the commonalities between Native American and mainstream systems of belief. He paints in the center on Fridays and Saturdays, 10 am - 2 pm, and welcomes visitors. His exclusive “Helena” T-shirts are being sold only at the center.
Foster is an adjunct instructor of art and archaeology at UM-Helena and is an alumni of the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe and Helena High School’s class of 1978.

From Queen City News, July 22, 2009:
http://www.queencitynews.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=10313&mode=flat&order=0&thold=0

I will be an Artist-in-Residence

2009-06-24T10:54:00.001-07:00

I am actually both a writer and artist. I am going to be Artist-in-Residence at the Lewis and Clark County Historical Society (58 N. Last Chance Gulch, in downtown Helena, Montana), during the month of July. I'll be working on my Helena Genius Loci series of paintings. This is a look at my first painting in progress, based on Chief Washakie of the Shoshone, as the South, on a 3 by 4 feet canvas. The first phase will be four paintings as the basis for an installation piece.

Injekuhanda na Rothrinke

2009-03-29T18:51:00.000-07:00

Two more recent works-

"Injekuhanda" - Charcoal

"Rothrinke - Watercolor

New Monochromatic Work

2009-03-26T15:26:00.000-07:00

I am currently limiting my palette these days to a monochromatic scheme...appropriate for late winter...even dabbling in nonrepresentational work as well...trying to see what new directions my art might take...the results are encouraging...

"Search and Rescue"

"Treeline and Boulder Field"

"Anima Loci #59601"

"Rimrock"

New Directions in My Art

2009-01-20T17:25:00.000-08:00

It's been a year since I posted, so I thought you might enjoy an update on some of the new directions my art has been taking.

The Indians of Iowa

Currently, my priority is finishing up last bits for the "Indians of Iowa" book that will be published this year by the University of Iowa Press. It is a guide to the different tribes that lived in the state of Iowa, including their history, archaeology, and culture, as well as the contemporary situation. I also did the art for it. This is the piece I did for the cover.

The Lady in the Sand

My next project is completing the artwork (the story is done) for my experimental graphic story called "The Lady in the Sand," about a little boy and a beach burial in Hawai'i. Here are some images from that project.

Ioway Tribal Legends

Back in the 1980s (20 years ago!), I did a graphic treatment of an ancient Ioway story about the origins of one of my tribe's sacred societies, called Mankanye Washi (The Medicine Dance), which you can see here.

I started working recently again with a bilingual treatment of another of our traditional stories, called "The Sister and Brother." It was mainly aimed at helping tribal members preserve the language, which is almost extinct. It is a very grim, dark tale of a woman's unfaithfulness to her family with a bear, insanity, murder, cannibalism, and other not-very-nice-things. I am not sure how far I want to go with this story, but here is the first couple of pages.

Exploration of Sculpture and Assemblage

I have done a few sculptures in my time, small pieces, terra cotta and stone. But I haven't done anything really for too many years. I am interested in working in that direction again, and to get over the inertia, I have recently been playing with clay. This is the head of Taranis, a Celtic god of the Thunder (and me).

Blackfeet Ghost Story: Heavy Collar and the Ghost Woman

2008-01-22T22:24:00.001-08:00

This is a ghost story from the Blackfeet/Blackfoot people, called "Heavy Collar and the Ghost Woman." I used to tell this story to may little sister, and to the Bear Comes Out kids. It was a favorite. There's not a lot of flash in this...it is straight-out storytelling old-school style...no sound effects or music. The story is in two parts. Just turn the lights down low, lay back and get comfortable, and listen to an old-style Indian ghost story.

Two Flowers Standing Woman

2008-01-18T18:26:00.000-08:00

I just finished this painting today, a commissioned work. It was begun back in 1984, three years after I left art school in Santa Fe.

It has often been a struggle to paint certain paintings. Some seem to be missing something, and then you put it on the back burner, never knowing exactly what was wrong. The back burner, way way way in the back. Behind the stove in fact.

I started this with the title as "Promise of Spring," with the Girl representing the Innocence of Spring and the meadowlark representing Truth. In a way, she represented a daughter I never had. The Girl's features and the painting style was inspired by Gauguin's work in the South Pacific. I was really into Gauguin and the Fauves at the time.

But there was something missing, and though several people expressed an interest in buying her, I would not part with her. I didn't want her to go with them. She was not complete, not yet ready to go into the world.

Flash forward to this last year, 2007. I had been asked about doing a commissioned work for a dear friend of mine several years ago (so many years ago, it was embarrassing). It was to be called "Two Flowers Standing Woman." I just couldn't get things together. I had done several sketches, and nothing was working. I asked my friend what kind of flowers, hoping that would get me moving. He said "Sunflowers." And something stirred in my mind and I could not remember what.

And then this fall, on my return to Montana, I found the Girl waiting for me. And it clicked. She even was holding her hands crossed upon her breast in a perfect way to hold the flowers. Sunflowers. Which clicked with the meadowlark and brought everything together. The girl was reborn and now she had a name: "Two Flowers Standing Woman." And she told me she was ready to travel onward. So I must release my little daughter. And now, 24 years later, the Girl is a Woman.

People often ask artists how long it takes them to paint a painting, somehow wanting to value a painting based on how long it takes to paint it. Well, this one took me from 1984 until 2008, 24 years, if that means anything. To an artist though, time has little meaning. A painting is ready when it is ready. This painting is alive and it is ready.

Tomah I (Myrna Loy Center Show): The Guardian

2007-10-30T09:23:00.000-07:00

[Label:] Many cultures believe that powerful, even frightening, images of angels and deities serve as protectors and guardians of holy places. On one side, there is an approaching summer thunderstorm (protection of the sacred) with the eagle, and on the other is the night sky of winter (purification).

[Media: Acrylic on canvas]

[Additional information: I painted this large painting when I was about 20 years old, while going to school at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Some spooky things had been going on in my dorm room, sounds when I was not there: a sound as of someone getting up off the bed, then footsteps to the door, and then a doorknob jiggling from inside. But all the students knew the Old North Dorm was haunted. Sounds of crying in the night, people walking in and out of walls, and lights turned on and off. So I painted this, based on the Lakota warrior "Low Dog" or "He Dog", who had fought against Custer at the Little Bighorn. I put a lot of different power symbols in the painting, both embedded and evident. And it worked. At least my room was quieted of activity. It might sound a little weird to some folks, but for us Indians and for us artists, the spiritual world is not that strange. Doubly so if you are an Indian artist!

Then my dad took "The Guardian" with him while he worked on the Northern Cheyenne Reservation and hung it on his apartment wall, which you could see from the outside street. He said sometimes he looked outside at night, and saw Cheyennes sitting in their car in the dark, looking at the painting. This painting has the definite "presence" of a guardian spirit. He is truly part of my family; "someone" lives in this painting. He will never be sold, and he lives with my mother and father now. If you click the video of me with "The Guardian" on the right side of this blog, you can hear me talk a little about it (It's from my YouTube site. If you are into spooky stuff, check out my Paranormal Montana blog.]

Tomah I (Myrna Loy Center Show): Genius Loci

2007-10-30T09:13:00.000-07:00

[Label:] Against the cold mountains stands a Genius Loci, a spirit of place. Transformation of the self is a big theme in our self-centered society. But what about transformation of society, and even of the land itself? We see this transformation every day, of natural places into a commodity to be bought and sold, as commerce is the true god of our society. The land offers an alternative. Can we transform, can we heal, and provide new life to the land? The Genius Loci waits to transform us and to be transformed in turn, like the butterflies on his hat.

[Media: Acrylic on canvas]

Tomah I (Myrna Loy Center Show): Pages from the Helena Landscape Notebook

2007-10-30T08:25:00.000-07:00

[Label:]My current work, supported by the Myrna Loy grant I received this year, is focused on the sacred landscape of Helena.

All over the world, landscapes are marked by sacred mountains, springs, and caves. As seen in Native American traditions and stories, and in such cultural traditions as Chinese Taoist Feng Shui, the land has a life-energy of its own. We can add to this also military and historical sites, family camping, ranching, and hunting memories and traditions, Christian and Buddhist ways of living, and conservation of our natural resources. Everyone has a special place that is sacred to them, whether it is a special place in nature or the old family place. And if that place is destroyed by the unthinking, the wounds go deep and may never be healed.

On the left is a microcosm, a model of the Helena Valley as the central place in our world as Helenans, marked out by the circumference of mountains and other features. There are multiple landscapes, each with their own center or heart. On the right, there is one of these sacred landscapes, in this case the Catholic landscape, with the St. Helena Cathedral as the heart of that sacred landscape. Besides the Catholic landscape layer seen here, there are many other significant sacred and mysterious landscape layers in and around Helena, such as that of military shrines and graves, of freemasonry, of Native American traditions and archaeological sites of the Blackfeet (Piegan), Flathead (Salish), Kootenai, Shoshone, and others.

[Media: pen/ink, pencil on paper]

Tomah I (Myrna Loy Center Show): Ishjinki Vincent Itaro Waduje wok’un ke

2007-10-29T09:27:00.000-07:00

[Label:] Ishjinki Vincent Itaro Waduje wok’un ke (Trickster gave his friend Vincent an ear of corn)

In western society, the artist is thought of as a marginal figure, and in the worst cases, prone to eccentricity and even madness. In traditional societies, the artist is an integral part of social life, expressing the inherent values of the society. The Trickster is an ambivalent figure, but one of the good things that he does is cure madness. In this painting, we see what might have happened if the quintessential “mad artist” Vincent Van Gogh would have had the friendship of Trickster. After Vincent cuts off his own ear, Trickster offers him the replacement ear…of corn. And a happy and healed Vincent teases him back, with the rabbit ear sign behind his head and tsk-tsking him for the joke. And in the background, the crows of madness fly away to the sunflower/sun under the framework of the world.

[Media: Acrylic on canvas]

Tomah I (Myrna Loy Center Show): Nothing will end until it ends

2007-10-29T09:23:00.000-07:00

[Label:] Helena has been “discovered” by people looking for a good place to live, just as they have in so many areas in Montana and the West have in years past. Now the new gold rush of development is on, and just as in the last one, the land is impacted. Even the guardian sacred mountain Mt. Helena, which stands as our city’s symbol, is not immune from the ambition and greed of those few who measure all values by the amount in their bank account and the praise of their fellows. The difference between “needs” and “wants” is that “needs” have limits, while “wants” have none.

[Media: Ink and Charcoal on Paper]

Tomah I (Myrna Loy Center Show): White Buffalo Calf Woman brings the Sacred Pipe

2007-10-29T08:55:00.000-07:00

[Label:]White Buffalo Calf Woman brought the gift of the Sacred Pipe to the Lakota, the core of their spiritual life as a people. Other tribes gained the sacred pipe and other ceremonies through other cultural heroes and sacred beings. This is one of the illustrations for my graphic novel retelling of the story of the White Buffalo Calf Woman.

[Media: Acrylic]

[I am currently completing the graphic novel, which I relocated after it was lost for about 20 years!]

Tomah I (Myrna Loy Center Show): Tilth

2007-10-29T08:41:00.000-07:00

[Label:] Tilth is the structure of the soil, seen in the stratigraphy of the earth beneath our feet, like layers of a cake. We start reading from the oldest layer, which is buried deepest, at the bottom, and then work our way up. In this example, the oldest layer is "Nuxe" (NOO-khay: ice), laid down by the glaciers, and then "Ni" (NEE: water, the melting glaciers and erosion), then "Maya" (MAH-yah: the earth built up by the sunlight and decay of plants). Finally, the last layer includes the bodies of those ancestors, "Washige s’age" (WAH-shee-gay S-AH-gay) who have gone before. On top, as we grow our crops and make our city, do we remember the tilth of the soil, made by ages and the bodies of those who have gone on before us? The toy tractor emphasizes how transient and small we are in the scheme of things.

[Media: Wood and panel board; metal toy; acrylic]

Tomah I (Myrna Loy Center Show): About the Exhibit

2007-10-28T21:50:00.000-07:00

The "Tomah I" exhibit is part of a Myrna Loy
Center Grants to Artists award. Foster will present a
series of mixed media paintings, drawings,
assemblages, and working studies for site-specific
installation focusing on the Helena Valley as a sacred
landscape. Tomah I is the first phase in this exploration.

The Native American culture hero Trickster (called
Ishjinki, in Foster’s Ioway tribe) is our guide
through various, sometimes antithetical, cultural
lenses: Native American ethnogeography, Chinese feng
shui, preindustrial European location/leylines,
American folk tradition, and Catholic pilgrimages. For
example, what is the connection between the continuing
controversy over the urban deer population in Helena,
and the ancient tradition that Helena Valley was
considered by the Salish and the Piegan to be a “game
cache,” a favored place where animals congregated and
could be found in times of scarcity? What does it mean
to be a sacred landscape,?

About the Artist: Lance M. Foster

A graduate of Helena High's class of 1978, Foster is
an alumni of the Institute of American Indian Arts in
Santa Fe, and of Carroll College. He received his B.A.
in Anthropology and Native American Studies from the
University of Montana. He has master's degrees in
Anthropology/Archaeology (M.A.) and Landscape
Architecture (M.L.A.) from Iowa State University.

Contact Information:

Lance M. Foster
320 E. Broadway #4
Helena, MT 59601
Phone: 422-5911
Email: lancemfoster@yahoo.com

Tomah I (Myrna Loy Center Show): Introduction

2007-10-28T20:31:00.000-07:00

My one-man art show at the Myrna Loy Center for the Performing Arts in Helena, Montana, was up for the month of October, 2007. The show was part of the "Grants to Artists Award" I was awarded earlier this year. The Center occupies the old County Jail, a fortress-like building. Myrna Loy, of course, was a famous and beautiful film actress, who was from Helena. That's the Center on the left, Myrna on top right, and a nice bust of her at the Center at below right.

My show was called "Tomah I" and focused on the sacred landscape of the Helena Valley. The Helena area was considered a "game pocket" or "game cache" by the indigenous Salish, Kootenai, and Piegan (Blackfeet) tribes. A "game pocket" (Blackfeet: Tomah) is a place where game may always be found, even in times of scarcity elsewhere. I was raised in the Helena Valley. Things were different then. People were different then. I am Indian (yeah, mixed-blood), and my ancestors had to go through this before, seeing the land and buffalo disappear. Now I am going through it myself, seeing the end of the world I knew. Grief is in my blood; I cannot escape it. I shake in grief. I joke a lot, because if laughter does not fill my heart, grief rushes in like a madness.

In the late 1990's, Helena was "discovered" by people from elsewhere, with more money than anyone I grew up with ever thought possible, crowding here in ever greater numbers. Such things have happened previously in places like Kalispell, Missoula, and Livingston. These folks have moved here from all over the U.S., seeking "The Last Best Place," and driving up housing prices and crowding the valley and hills. Sucking the valley water table ever lower. Unfortunately, all the little houses and ranchettes they have built "in the woods" have driven the deer from the hills into town. Deer coming into town was unheard of when I was growing up here. I was shocked at seeing so many people on the Missouri River compared to the old days. I know Norman MacLean, author of "A River Runs Through It," was heartbroken when he saw the onslaught and decimation of the rivers. He said I never would have written that book if I would have known this was going to happen as a result.

No use crying over spilt milk. What's done is done, and there's no going back. But it is important that these new folks understand about this place, the Helena Valley. What makes it special, the sacred places, the history, and the dangers. Before they devour it and turn it into the thousand-other-same-places of Starbucks and Malls that the madding crowds have left elsewhere, speckling the land like pigeon dung, jumping about like locusts from field-to-field. I am not special-cussing out people who are new, because we are all strangers somewhere. I just think you need to do the best you can to fit into a place, and not just rip it to shreds. And the developers from here are worse than the newcomers...those developers and realtors who just care about buying another sleek SUV and fattening their bank accounts are the ones who really will have a special place in hell. I mean, for Pete's sakes, this is MONTANA...we have four-wheel drives, not SUVs! We used to make FUN of rich people in Montana, and now we wag our tails like a bunch of whipped pups!

Yeah, I reckon I like people as much as the next persnickety old cuss, but I don't like crowds. Drives me nuts. I sure as hell don't like people who come in and who destroy things they don't understand. I'm gonna have to learn to deal, because that's how things are now. Maybe someday you'll understand, if you are new; and you already know, if you are from here. Now that you know how grouchy I am, you probably know I am not good at being a salesman! But at least you know when i smile at you, it is real, and I won't be smiling and stabbing you in the back at the same time ;-)