"Beardy's brilliant application of color is drawn from his dreams. The geography of his paintings is a blend of the visible universe and the invisible powers that animate the visible, and give it life and meaning. The time in which the works are set is mythological time, before history. The paintings are not separate from the major themes of Jackson's life and in fact parallel his own growth and spiritual development. They dealt not only with the mysteries of matter but also with those of creation and life; they sought to harmonize the human individual with the universe, Jackson's alchemy is performed between two socio-political worlds. He struggled to be effective and to balance his own life between two powerful unseen Manitou forces." (Colleen Cutschall, p. 22)
Red Cloud 'Makpiya-luta'. As a non-hereditary chief, Red Cloud became the most successful war leader of the Cheyenne and Sioux during the 1860's and the Indians' campaign to close the Bozeman Trail and keep the Powder River inviolate. The Sioux were victorious and with the signing of the Fort Laramic treaty in 1868 the army abandoned her forts within the Dakota's hunting grounds. Thus Red Cloud became one of the few Indians ever to win an armed conflict against the U.S. Army. (Harbaugh, P., 1982)
