Red Cloud / Mahpiya Luta (1994)
oil on canvas, 50 x 120 cm

Mahpiya Luta (Red Cloud) was a Sioux Indian chief. He was determined not to be constricted by the European colonists who promised the tribes the use of hunting grounds but broke that promise again and again. A strong and proud man, he fought to the bitter end. Then he had to submit to the fact that the white men wanted all the land, that, according to the natives, could not be in the possession of man. Some people realise that a great culture has been as good as wiped out. A way of life that had respect for the earth and all its creatures. We can consider ourselves the crown of creation, but we'll always be a part of nature, and have to abide to her laws. If we don't, we will destroy life.