Cowoy Amon Carter
Silent Spikes by Kenneth Tam
“Cowboy,” a nationally touring exhibit that features over 60 contemporary works of art, opens to the public at the Amon Carter Museum of American Art today.
For those expecting the exhibit to be awash in your stereotypical, Hollywod-ized depictions of the Wild West — Frederic Remington’s rifle-wielding bandits on horseback and the like — you’re in for quite a surprise.
Despite its simple and straightforward name, the exhibit is anything but. It’s a showcase of art that shines a light on an even grittier, truer depiction of the historical West while also encapsulating what one would call the “Modern West,” a phrase often used to describe the juxtaposition we experience in our hometown, and which has been adopted as a tagline for the city of Fort Worth as a whole.
“’Cowboy’ reexamines a familiar figure represented in the core collection of the Carter, providing new insight into the historical and current realities of the cowboy, not just in art, but across American culture,” Andrew J. Walker, executive director at the Amon Carter, said in a statement.
“Cowboy” is a portrait of the West from perspectives not often represented; this is particularly true within the genre of Western art. Through March of next year, the walls of the Amon Carter’s second floor will be adorned with paintings, photos, films, sculptures, and mixed media works by and of individuals from such underrepresented groups.
This is not a reimagining of the cowboy. If anything, this marks the most honest portrayal the word "Cowboy" has ever had.
“If we think about who was and is responsible for cattle-related labor in the American West, it’s easy to fall into the trap, promoted by pulp fiction, dime novels, Hollywood, and many other cultural producers, that everyone looked like the Marlboro Man or a figure in a Remington painting,” Andrew Eschelbacher, director of collections and exhibitions at the Amon Carter, said in a press release. “Through the work of leading modern and contemporary artists, the picture of who a cowboy was and is — Black, Asian American, LGBTQIA+, Native, a woman, or so much more — expands to be something much more reflective of historical and present-day reality. This show expands the narrative of cowboy culture for our visitors in a city that is a historic epicenter of ranching and wrangling.”
Yes, instead of John Wayne bronco busting, you’ll find the Duke depicted as a vampire on the lining of a cloak in a mixed media work by Greg Deal. But before one cries blasphemy, there is purpose behind such a rendering that goes beyond shock value — one need only to read the handy museum labels beside each work of art.
That said, we do recommend one heed the following warning: This exhibit not only promotes underrepresented perspectives, but it is also critical of the romanticized Marlboro Man aesthetic commonly found in Western art. And, considering the Amon Carter has such depictions in spades on the floor below, this makes for a fascinating juxtaposition.
If you come with an open mind, we can’t recommend this exhibit enough.
The Amon Carter is the second stop on this nationally touring exhibit, which kicked off at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Denver. It will be showing on the second floor at the museum through March 23, 2025.
