Buffalo: Original Americans

Buffalo - ORIGINAL AMERICANS pays homage to one of the greatest tragedies in the history of human wildlife interaction. It is well known that there were once some 70 million Bison roaming the plains of America.  By their very nature as the largest grazers on the land, they were the keystone animal that provided for a fertile landscape with rich productive soil. It is also well known, that as European settlers expanded west, they brought the bison to the verge of extinction through the introduction of cattle and their diseases, but more egregiously the wanton and indiscriminate killing of animal after animal.  It is a black mark in American history. Today there are only a a few herds remaining, most notably in Yellowstone National Park, but there is a greater movement to restore the American Bison to some of its former range in the great plains.  That, of course is being met by vociferous objection from cattle ranchers and the like.  People don’t want change because it is their right to a way of life that their families have forged for generations. The same can be said of the American Bison.  They are the Original Americans, here long before any European families settled here to create their way of life.  No care was ever given to the Bison’s way of life. No care was given to what the Bison provide to create a healthy landscape and rich productive soil.  Instead, they were brought to the brink of extinction.  It’s time to let old ideas go and forge ahead with a new paradigm.  Nobody is looking to take anybody’s way of life away.  All we want is to allow Bison to inhabit those areas where it is most feasible for them to do so and in turn help to restore those areas of the great American plains to their original glory. 

Artist: Rob Whitehair

Digital mixed media: Pencil on Procreate, Photoshop, Acrylic