Ascension
Artist
Delmas Howe
(American, born 1935)
Date1997
Mediumoil on canvas
Dimensions71 × 85 × 1 1/2 in. (180.3 × 215.9 × 3.8 cm)
ClassificationsPainting
Object number2024.7.1
DescriptionTable with a saddle and pile of red chili peppers. A cowboy seated on a horse with back to viewer is on the right while a nude cowboy stands with another horse on the left. Mountains dominate the center midground with dramatic clouds in the background.eMuseum Notes
Delmas Howe’s childhood was shaped by his upbringing in southern New Mexico, and he uses the language of Renaissance painting to explore the myth of the American cowboy and the magnificent landscapes of the Rio Grande Valley. Ascension is the story of the death and burial of a cowboy, symbolized by the saddleless horse, and was inspired by the death of Howe’s own partner. The nude figure leading the horse away signifies the heroic figure passing from this world, while the clothed cowboy on horseback with his back to the viewer represents the living people left behind.
On View
Not on view
