Range Rider Against the Storm Photograph by Toni Hopper

Range Rider Against the Storm

by Toni Hopper

Canvas Print

$67

Framed Print

$76

Art Print

$21

Poster

$21

Metal Print

$73

Acrylic Print

$81

Wood Print

$53

Jigsaw Puzzle

$38

Weekender Tote Bag

$44

Greeting Card

$5.45

iPhone Case

$28

Weekender Tote Bag

$44

Coffee Mug

$13

Title

Range Rider Against the Storm

Artist

Toni Hopper

Medium

Photograph - Photograph

Description

I photographed this statue in 2010, and researched the history of this incredible art in March 2018, after I turned my photograph into an art image through the use of textures and other digital methods. I had researched it years ago, but not to the extent at which I have recently done. (info below)

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The finished piece makes me think of a cowboy and horse battling the red dirt of Oklahoma in the wind. Thus its title: "Range Rider Against the Storm."
This piece will be available in the Limited Edition canvas collection for a few days.

I share the information on this piece below (with a few slight edits) for those interested. It is quite fascinating and was the first piece installed on the Capitol grounds in Oklahoma. It was also sculpted by a woman.

Information from the Oklahoma Arts Council page:
Constance Whitney Warren's intricately detailed sculpture of a bucking bronco and a steadfast cowboy in wool chaps was the first sculpture installed on the grounds of Oklahoma's State Capitol. Known as "a bronze tribute to the romantic riders of the range" the sculpture represents Oklahoma history as seen through the eyes of the cowboy that rode across her land on his trustee steed.

Scheduled for May 30, 1930, the initial dedication led by Governor William J. Holloway and Oklahoma Supreme Court Justice Albert C. Hunt was postponed due to Will Roger's inability to attend. The preceding governor, William H. "Alfalfa Bill" Murray, was rumored to despise Mr. Rogers for his support of Democratic presidential nominee Franklin D. Roosevelt. Governor Murray ordered a tarpaulin to cover the statue and when the tarpaulin disappeared the governor issued a $500 reward for the arrest of the culprits with the exception of Will Rogers. Soon the tarpaulin was missing again. When asked about the matter Rogers jovially remarked, "It musta' been a cyclone that did it cause that tarp was blown clean to Governor Murray's back yard."

The sculpture was officially dedicated 27 years later on November 14, 1957.

The Artist
Born and raised in New York, Constance Whitney Warren became fascinated with frontier life at an early age. Her father, Henry Warren, often told her stories of his days as a mining engineer in the American West. Consequently, as a young schoolgirl she filled her notebooks with drawings depicting various animals - most prominently horses.

In 1911, while pursuing her career in art, she made the acquaintance of the French Count Guy de Lasteyrie. One year later she became his wife and made a new home for herself in Paris. World War I created numerous hindrances for Warren. Unable to make a living as an artist, she took odd jobs chauffeuring English staff officers. When the war finally ended, Warren devoted her time to sculpting, even exhibiting a few pieces at the Paris Salon.

In the 1920s, her reputation had grown, particularly in the United States. The state of Oklahoma eventually acquired her Tribute to Range Riders in 1926. Slightly smaller than life-size, the work proudly stands at the entrance to the State Capitol. Warren died in 1948.