Chief Carl Terry Saul (1921–1976) also known as C. Terry Saul and Tabaksi, was a Choctaw Nation/Chickasaw illustrator, painter, muralist, commercial artist, and educator.[1][2] He was a leader of the Choctaw/Chickasaw tribe. He served as Director of the art program at Bacone College in Muskogee, Oklahoma, from 1970 until 1976.[3][4]
Chief Terry Saul | |
|---|---|
| Born | Carl Terry Saul April 2, 1921 |
| Died | May 1976 (aged 54–55) Muskogee, Oklahoma, U.S. |
| Other names | Tabaksi, C. Terry Saul |
| Education | Bacone College, University of Oklahoma, Art Students League of New York |
Biography
editSaul was a citizen of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma.[5] He attended Bacone College,[1] where he studied under Acee Blue Eagle,[6] and Woody Crumbo.[6] His classmates at Bacone College included Walter Richard “Dick” West, Sr. and Oscar Howe, all of which started the early process of departing for traditional Native art and painting-styles, and moving towards Surrealism and engaging in modernist aesthetics.[7]
He served in the United States Army during World War II.[8] After the war, Saul continued his studies at University of Oklahoma, Norman (OU), where he received a BFA degree (1948) and MFA degree (1949); and at the Art Students League of New York, from 1951 to 1952.[1][8] Saul was the first Native American student to receive a MFA degree from the University of Oklahoma.[9]
In 1960, he lived in Bartlesville, Oklahoma and in addition to painting, Saul worked at the Phillips Petroleum Company.[10] He is known for his watercolor paintings, and casein paintings depicting Plains Tribes heritage and ceremonies.[11][10] He later returned to teach at Bacone College, where he served as the Director of the art program from 1970 to 1976.[3] One of his students was Joan Brown.[12]
His artwork is in museum collections, including the Gilcrease Museum,[13] Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art,[14] and the Philbrook Museum of Art.[15]
Publications
edit- Grerory, Jack; Strickland, Rennard (1972). Choctaw Spirit Tales. Chief Terry Saul (illustrations), Indian Heritage Association (1st ed.). Muskogee, OK: Hoffman Printing Company.
References
edit- ^ a b c Visions and Voices: Native American Painting from the Philbrook Museum of Art. Philbrook Museum of Art. 1996. pp. 229–230. ISBN 978-0-86659-013-6.
- ^ Clark, Blue (2020-09-03). Indian Tribes of Oklahoma: A Guide. University of Oklahoma Press. p. 131. ISBN 978-0-8061-6762-6.
- ^ a b Lawson, Russell M.; Lawson, Benjamin A. (2019-10-11). Race and Ethnicity in America: From Pre-contact to the Present [4 volumes]. ABC-CLIO. p. 18. ISBN 978-1-4408-5097-4.
- ^ "Clipped From The Daily Oklahoman". The Daily Oklahoman. 1974-11-10. p. 255. Retrieved 2022-10-10 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Remembering William Terry Saul, Native elder, journalist and cosmically cool musician". The Oaklandside. Retrieved 2024-10-22.
- ^ a b Neuman, Lisa K. (2020-03-09). Indian Play: Indigenous Identities at Bacone College. University of Nebraska Press. p. 204. ISBN 978-1-4962-0932-0.
- ^ White, Mark A. (2013). Mesch, Claudia (ed.). "A Modernist Moment: Native Art and Surrealism at the University of Oklahoma". Journal of Surrealism and the Americas. 7 (1): 52–70.
- ^ a b "Terry Saul - Biography". AskArt.com. Retrieved 2022-10-10.
- ^ Sheets, Nan (1958-04-13). "33 Artists, Prize-Winners All: Indian Works Now on Display". The Daily Oklahoman. p. 56. Retrieved 2022-10-10.
- ^ a b "Saul Picture Goes to Wash". Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise. 1960-12-11. p. 21. Retrieved 2022-10-10 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Terry Saul Works in Linear Fashion". Newspapers.com. The Arizona Republic. June 13, 1965. p. 70. ISSN 0892-8711. Retrieved 2022-10-10.
- ^ Broder, Patricia Janis (2013-12-10). Earth Songs, Moon Dreams: Paintings by American Indian Women. Macmillan. p. 261. ISBN 978-1-4668-5972-2.
- ^ "C. Terry Saul". Gilcrease Museum. Retrieved 2022-10-10.
- ^ "Chief Terry Saul". OU.edu. Retrieved 2022-10-10.
- ^ "Choctaw Sick Dance, Terry Saul (Chief Terry Saul; Tobaksi, Ember of Fire or the Coal), Choctaw, Watercolor". Native Voices. Retrieved 2022-10-10.