Linda Pease Reception at the Brinton Museum

On Friday, March 14, The Brinton Museum in Big Horn hosted a reception for Crow artist Linda Pease from Billings, Montana.

This is the Brinton Museum’s first exhibition of the season, and the 20th Illustrator Show. In her introduction, Barbara McNab, curator of exhibitions, said that Pease is one of eight generations of artists in the Pease family.

Pease thanked the Brinton staff for “Thinking outside the box,” when they added her to the Illustrator Show.

In 2019, Pease retired from education. She had been an art educator since she graduated from college. She said she needed something to do, and she got an opportunity to illustrate children’s books that were written in the Crow language.

She talked about one of the paintings that were on display at the show, titled Transformation, which is a butterfly being transformed into a dancer.

Her professor commented, “interesting material.” Later, she framed it in plexiglass to preserve it.

Some of her paintings are bright and colorful, like Yakama Woman, and some, like the illustrations for “Lost Boy” are softer and with more muted colors.

One painting she had on display was to bring more attention to one of the realities the Indigenous Peoples face today, that is missing and murdered indigenous women, and people. Or she put it, missing and murdered people. One of her friends was killed in Billings.

She added that the people along the left side of the teepee represents the souls who are in a beautiful place, and the ones on the other side represent those who mourn here on earth.

Using oils, acrylics, watercolors, mixed-media materials, colored markers, and ledger papers, Pease illustrates her remembrances as a child growing up Indian, of unwritten stories of battles, of ceremonies and of dances, and the love and care shown by her extended Indian family.

She added that the ledger paper makes great teepees in her artwork.

The show continues at The Brinton Museum through April 7.