Out Of The Box

A billhead from the Fulton Market in Butte, Montana, dated the 26th of January, 1904. One dozen quail, as ordered.

This is what the document looked like before I decided to embellish it with my art work.

The text reads "Quail scarce - hard to get at any price. Can you use Finnan Haddies at 12 1/2 4 ??? choice stock". 

 ECM

Finnan Haddies or Haddie is cold smoked Haddock, and I suppose you could consider it an imported table delicacy, although I seriously doubt it was imported.

This is the box top I found for the image I used as a model for the art work. I will include a copy of the original document with the finished piece when it finds a new home.

Indian Motocycle Rides Home on a BMW

I completed two pieces of Indian paper before going to the Western Heritage Artists show in Great Falls, Montana, the 14th through the 18th of March past.  Bob (and his wife) purchased a piece of Winchester paper in 2010, and they didn't find anything in my room last year that piqued their interest.

My theory is that if you offer a little bit of history with some art in the mix, people sooner or later will fall for a nice dose of both.

Bob liked Contact Point #2, which I tied with a leather thong to a BMW badge from a 1923 BMW motorcycle for his Thank You. Indian paper is not only hard to come by, but hard to hold onto. I love it when that happens. And thanks to my Brother-In-Law Tom Benson for gifting me the wonderful paper.

Winchester Model 1892 44-40 DeluxeTakedown Rifle

This is a piece of paper that I found while looking through a large box of about 4,000 documents, and rightfully did not belong in the box. For the most part, when I began looking for paper to put my art work on, I was buying left-overs and the less-expensive pieces that I could not only afford, but could do something with. I set this piece aside in the keeper pile, and once I'd finished with the box, I had a rather 'short stack' to be considered for pricing.

When the shop owner started going through my selections, he came upon this and said "WHERE did you find THIS"? I explained that it was 'in the box'. His response was to tell me he really ought not to be selling it to me, because this kind of paper is very valuable to those who collect firearms and related ephemera. I bought it. It was expensive, but I knew I wanted it and I knew what I wanted to put on it. The rifle depicted is a very collectible firearm, and probably would sell for about $30,000 on today's market.

I can't wait for a gun collector to see it.