Postcard from the Past: Cowboy Gathering Feature Mountain Man Art
By: Dirk Perue
Faithful reader, this week’s postcard is a newer one but a good one close to my heart. Hope you enjoy and take in the great events in your hometown.
For the first time in the 22-year history of the Grand Encampment Cowboy Gathering, slated for July 19-21 at Grand View Park in Encampment, promotional artwork will feature the mountain man. During past years, the theme has been cowboy and ranch, while last year’s was a Native American painting.
Noted Western and Wildlife Artist R.G. Finney of Riverside has donated his painting “Mountain Vista” to the Grand Encampment Cowboy Gathering Outfit (GECGO) for use in advertising and promotion of the event. The framed print will be raffled off with the winner selected at the all-star show on Saturday night.
Featured during the three-day event will be performances by a dozen talented cowboy poets and musicians, three shows, a campfire jam session, rawhide and 4-H kids crafting demonstrations, a quilt show, lunch and cowboy church.
Daily tours of the Grand Encampment Museum are also available. A complete schedule of events will be released next week or may be found in this publication.
This is the 19th year R.G. and his wife Lynn have produced and provided artwork to the sponsoring GECGO. Unfortunately, Lynn passed away this spring and health concerns have prevented R.G. from painting an original for this year’s gathering.
However, R. G. assured the outfit he would provide art for the event, as long as any of his paintings were available.
When it came selection time for this year’s promotional art, R.G. took Committee Member Dick Perue to his studio, showed him dozens of paintings and said, “You may pick any one of these you want.”
Perue selected one of his favorites, “Mountain Vista,” which some lucky person will win, plus a limited number of prints will be available.
See the accompanying photo of “Mountain Vista” painted by R.G. Finney.
