Lot #106: James Bama å Prints - Set of 2

James Bama Signed Prints - Set of 2James Elliott Bama (April 28, 1926 April 24, 2022) was an American artist known for his realistic paintings and etchings of Western subjects. Life in Wyoming led to his comment, "Here an artist can trace the beginnings of Western history, see the first buildings, the oldest wagons, saddles and armaments, and be up close to the remnants of Indian culture ... And you can stand surrounded by nature's wonders."Winter TrappingSignedNumbered 1420/1500Size: 20.5 x 171980The term for 'leader' among mountain men is 'boosh-way.' This boosh-way heads a local mountain man organization called Yellowstone Mountain Men, Cody, Wyoming. He was the perfect model for a painting I wanted to create: I thought it would be interesting to have a modern mountain man dressed in exactly the same garb as his predecessors of an earlier period. Mountain men make their own outfits and the boosh-way had made a costume completely by hand that was exactly like those from the 1820-40 period. The results lived up to my expectations . . . perhaps revealing that even 150 years can't dull the spirit of the mountain men who roamed the Old West. At a Mountain Man WeddingSignedNumbered 201/1500Size 22" X 22" 1980It should have been the mid-1800s but the time was actually Memorial Day, 1980. The place was Cody, Wyoming. The people were mountain men; 300 of them from all different regions dash; who had gathered for a three day rendezvous. All lived in tents and wore authentic mountain man costumes. The highlight of the final day was the wedding ceremony. The groom, Richard Briggs, was dressed in a French Canadian trapper outfit from the 1820-1840 period. His entire outfit, including his voyageur hat, was handmade. All 300 were in attendance, and, of course, all were authentically attired; including the minister
Condition: Like New