Delbert Buck (Navajo, b. 1976). Mixed media folk sculpture (cottonwood, fabric, wool, leather, paper, and paint) n.d. Signed on underside of turtle. Sometimes art really can bring a smile to one's face, and this piece by self-taught Navajo artist Delbert Buck does just that! A wonderful hand-carved and hand-painted sculpture of a cowpoke riding a turtle. In addition to carrying its rider, the turtle also carries a pair of wool blankets - one on each side of its shell - as well as a book titled "101 Jokes" (adding to the humor of this piece) that rests upon a twin-handled cooler on the back end of its shell. The woman is dressed in colorful Western garb with a wide-brimmed hat and fabulous red boots. What's more, Buck gave the turtle matching boots to boot! What a fun piece to add to your collection! Size: 13.125" L x 7.75" W x 13.625" H (33.3 cm x 19.7 cm x 34.6 cm)

Born in Shiprock, New Mexico, self-taught Navajo folk artist Delbert Buck began creating art at age nine. At age 12, Buck began created sculpture from found objects, and at age 14 he was represented by a gallery.

More about the artist: "Delbert got a young start as a folk artist. He began making sculpture from found objects at age twelve and was represented in a gallery by the time he was fourteen. It was in 1988 that Delbert's father Wilford Buck introduced his son to trader Jack Beasley, of the Four Corners area. With his father handling the boy's art business, Delbert says he didn't even know the value of money until he was in in his teens.

He assembles constructions from found objects and cottonwood limbs, then roughly carves and paints them. His first carvings were the toy guns and the small wooden horses he and his brothers used to make. His inspirations are many.

First there were the comic books that encouraged him to think it possible for a sheep to drive a car. As he aged, he drew on personal experiences, such as his rodeo bull riding, the colorful chaps he wore in rodeos, and his trips in a single engine airplane, to inspire his sculpture.

Delbert's art is humorous and even satiric. His cowgirls and cowboys ride be-speckled skunks, buffaloes, propeller planes, rocking horses, or giraffes, with a goat in chaps and hat, or maybe a monkey or dog, riding behind. A wagon filled with pigs, Dalmatians, or chickens is pulled by a booted pig or an oxen-sized dog. It might take Delbert three to four weeks to complete one of his larger pieces.

All of his carving is by hand. He uses acrylic paint and a wide variety of found materials. Paper, fabric, yarn, and wool all find their way into his work. He even sews the clothing on his figures, as taught by his mother…" (Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian)

Delbert Buck's sculptures have been collected by the Smithsonian Museum of American Art, the Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian, and other esteemed art instititions.

Delbert Buck has modestly stated, "I'm just an ordinary guy. I'm surprised how people have responded and that I can make a living from my carving." The art world has certainly received Buck favorably, and we agree with their assessment wholeheartedly!

Provenance: private Goldstein collection, Denver, Colorado, USA. The Goldstein's have amassed their collection over the past six decades.

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#177080

Signed on underside of turtle. One of the hide ties covering a blanket is torn. Otherwise, overall excellent.