Everyone has heard the saying, "The good they die young." I never really believed that, but it was true in the care of Iowa Indian artist Jean Bales.
Jean was from Oklahoma and was a breath of fresh air to everyone she met. She was also an amazing artist. We met in Denver at one of the early meetings of the Indian Arts and Crafts Association. I think it was the spring of 1976 at the Stouffer Hotel by the airport. The IACA did not have a wholesale market at the time. The organization had been founded primarily because of John Kennedy Jr.'s efforts to preserve, promote, and protect authentic American Indian art, which at the time was under assault from foreign imports.
I was in the lobby talking to some of the people I knew when someone, I think maybe Beth Clark, who owned the Serendipity store in Estes Park, asked if I wanted to go upstairs and see some paintings. We rode up the elevator and stepped off in front of a room with an open door. Paintings covered the two beds in the room and were leaning against the table and chairs.
The two wonderful women in the room wore big smiles. It was the first time I met Virginia Stroud and Jean Bales. Both were from Oklahoma. Stroud was a Cherokee who had been Miss Indian America, and Bales was an Iowa artist who had already established a following for her art. It was a great couple of hours as we got to know each other.
These committed women drove to Denver with a car full of paintings to set up in a hotel room at a brand-new association's meeting, hoping they would do well. They did. And they met lots of contacts that paid off down the road.
Toh-Atin later published prints for both women and distributed them across the country. Both went on to be the IACA Artist of the Year. Both won Blue Ribbons at the Gallup Ceremonial and the Santa Fe Market. These were women with talent who went after success.
We attended IACA markets together for years and met at the major Indian art markets. One of my happiest moments at the Santa Fe Market came when I got down to the Plaza early on Saturday morning, and Jean was hanging up a large painting she had just retrieved from the preview show SWAIA holds the night before for prize winners.
It was a beautiful painting of two women walking with a travois with bright orange and yellow colors and figures outlined in black. It was a big painting, maybe 3 1/2 feet by 5 feet, with a gorgeous blue ribbon hanging on the front. I bought that painting, and years later, I sold it during a slow cash flow period—a decision I have always regretted.
But in general, I have to say that my favorite paintings by Jean were smaller, more detailed pieces painted on handmade rice paper and depicted women and children involved in everyday life. We recently received one of these paintings, Pumpkin Harvest, framed by an oval mat.
It's been a long time since I've seen one of Jean's paintings for sale. It brought back many great memories, and I wanted to share them with you! She died way too young, but she left a mark.
