Original Watercolor “Navajo Scout and his Horse” [R]

Robert Draper was a Navajo born in Chinle, Arizona, of a Navajo mother and a Hopi-Laguna father.  From the age of two, he lived with his grandparents who raised him. He was given their surname when he entered school at the age of eight. He attended Chinle Boarding School on the Navajo Reservation, Inter-Mountain Indian School in Utah for four years, and the Institute of America Indian Arts in Santa Fe. He served a tour of duty in the U. S. Marine Corps.

Draper concentrated on painting in the European or semi-European style, presenting scenes of the beautiful landscapes of the Navajo Reservation.  This painting of a Navajo scout perched on the edge of a rock formation while holding the reins of his horse, is rendered in beautiful brilliant colors associated with the Southwest.  The red rocks and the vivid colors in the sky are still brilliant as if never displayed in light.  It looks like the painting has been put away in the dark since it was painted.  This is one of the finest of the artist's watercolors we have seen.

Condition:  the painting appears to be in original beautiful condition as if never exposed to light.

Provenance: from the collection of the Balcomb family.

Recommended Reading:  Southwest Indian Painting: a changing art by Clara Lee Tanner