Jerome Tiger
Encyclopedia
Jerome Richard Tiger was a highly influential Native American painter
from Oklahoma
. Tiger produced hundreds of paintings from 1962 until his death in 1967.
A fullblood Muscogee Creek-Seminole
, Tiger's style is said to be a combination of "spiritual vision, humane understanding, and technical virtuosity" but with traditional subject matter and composition.
His paintings first gained recognition at the Philbrook Museum of Art
.
on July 8, 1941, Tiger attended public schools in Eufaula, Oklahoma
and Muskogee, Oklahoma
. English was not his first language.
Dropping out of high school at the age of 16, Tiger joined the United States Navy
and served in the Naval Reserve from 1958 to 1960. He also worked as a laborer and prize fighter. He studied at the Cleveland Engineering Institute in Cleveland, Ohio
, but dropped out after one year.
. He began to produce a prolific number of paintings over the next several years, winning numerous awards. In 1966, the Philbrook Museum of Art displayed a solo exhibit of Tiger's art. During this time, he lived in Muskogee, Oklahoma
.
Tiger was compared to Rembrandt and Francisco Goya
because of his ability to draw an object or person after a short glance. He worked in oil, watercolor, tempera, casein, pencil, and pen and ink.
s in Tulsa, Oklahoma
, the Five Civilized Tribes Museum in Muskogee, Oklahoma
, the Woolaroc Museum near Bartlesville, Oklahoma
, the Museum of New Mexico
in Santa Fe, New Mexico
, the Museum of the American Indian and the Bureau of Indian Affairs
.
Jerome's brother, Johnny Tiger, Jr.
and daughter, Dana Tiger. are successful artists. Jerome's other daughter, Lisa Tiger, is a prominent AIDS educator and activist as well as a motivational speaker.
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
from Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
. Tiger produced hundreds of paintings from 1962 until his death in 1967.
A fullblood Muscogee Creek-Seminole
Seminole
The Seminole are a Native American people originally of Florida, who now reside primarily in that state and Oklahoma. The Seminole nation emerged in a process of ethnogenesis out of groups of Native Americans, most significantly Creeks from what is now Georgia and Alabama, who settled in Florida in...
, Tiger's style is said to be a combination of "spiritual vision, humane understanding, and technical virtuosity" but with traditional subject matter and composition.
His paintings first gained recognition at the Philbrook Museum of Art
Philbrook Museum of Art
The Philbrook Museum of Art in Tulsa, Oklahoma is an art museum and former home of Oklahoma oil pioneer Waite Phillips and his wife Genevieve Phillips. , the museum has a staff of 60 and an operating budget of nearly $6 million....
.
Early life
Born in Tahlequah, OklahomaTahlequah, Oklahoma
Tahlequah is a city in Cherokee County, Oklahoma, United States located at the foothills of the Ozark Mountains. It was founded as a capital of the original Cherokee Nation in 1838 to welcome those Cherokee forced west on the Trail of Tears. The city's population was 15,753 at the 2010 census. It...
on July 8, 1941, Tiger attended public schools in Eufaula, Oklahoma
Eufaula, Oklahoma
Eufaula is a city in McIntosh County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 2,639 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of McIntosh County.-Geography:Eufaula is located at ....
and Muskogee, Oklahoma
Muskogee, Oklahoma
Muskogee is a city in Muskogee County, Oklahoma, United States. It is the county seat of Muskogee County, and home to Bacone College. The population was 38,310 at the 2000 census, making it the eleventh-largest city in Oklahoma....
. English was not his first language.
Dropping out of high school at the age of 16, Tiger joined the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
and served in the Naval Reserve from 1958 to 1960. He also worked as a laborer and prize fighter. He studied at the Cleveland Engineering Institute in Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
, but dropped out after one year.
Artistic career
In 1962, a friend encouraged Tiger to submit his paintings to the American Indian Artists Annual at the Philbrook Museum of Art in Tulsa, OklahomaTulsa, Oklahoma
Tulsa is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 46th-largest city in the United States. With a population of 391,906 as of the 2010 census, it is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with 937,478 residents in the MSA and 988,454 in the CSA. Tulsa's...
. He began to produce a prolific number of paintings over the next several years, winning numerous awards. In 1966, the Philbrook Museum of Art displayed a solo exhibit of Tiger's art. During this time, he lived in Muskogee, Oklahoma
Muskogee, Oklahoma
Muskogee is a city in Muskogee County, Oklahoma, United States. It is the county seat of Muskogee County, and home to Bacone College. The population was 38,310 at the 2000 census, making it the eleventh-largest city in Oklahoma....
.
Tiger was compared to Rembrandt and Francisco Goya
Francisco Goya
Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker regarded both as the last of the Old Masters and the first of the moderns. Goya was a court painter to the Spanish Crown, and through his works was both a commentator on and chronicler of his era...
because of his ability to draw an object or person after a short glance. He worked in oil, watercolor, tempera, casein, pencil, and pen and ink.
Death and legacy
Tiger died from a handgun accident on August 13, 1967, at the age of 26. His art can be found at the Philbrook and Gilcrease MuseumGilcrease Museum
Gilcrease Museum is a museum located northwest of downtown Tulsa, Oklahoma. The museum now houses the world's largest, most comprehensive collection of art of the American West as well as a growing collection of art and artifacts from Central and South America...
s in Tulsa, Oklahoma
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Tulsa is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 46th-largest city in the United States. With a population of 391,906 as of the 2010 census, it is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with 937,478 residents in the MSA and 988,454 in the CSA. Tulsa's...
, the Five Civilized Tribes Museum in Muskogee, Oklahoma
Muskogee, Oklahoma
Muskogee is a city in Muskogee County, Oklahoma, United States. It is the county seat of Muskogee County, and home to Bacone College. The population was 38,310 at the 2000 census, making it the eleventh-largest city in Oklahoma....
, the Woolaroc Museum near Bartlesville, Oklahoma
Bartlesville, Oklahoma
Bartlesville is a city in Osage and Washington counties in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The population was 43,070 at the 2010 census. Bartlesville is located forty-seven miles north of Tulsa and very close to Oklahoma's northern border with Kansas. It is the county seat of Washington County, in...
, the Museum of New Mexico
Museum of New Mexico
The Museum of New Mexico consists of six separate institutions in Santa Fe, New Mexico, including :* New Mexico Museum of Art* Palace of the Governors* Museum of Indian Arts & Culture/Laboratory of Anthropology* Museum of International Folk Art...
in Santa Fe, New Mexico
Santa Fe, New Mexico
Santa Fe is the capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico. It is the fourth-largest city in the state and is the seat of . Santa Fe had a population of 67,947 in the 2010 census...
, the Museum of the American Indian and the Bureau of Indian Affairs
Bureau of Indian Affairs
The Bureau of Indian Affairs is an agency of the federal government of the United States within the US Department of the Interior. It is responsible for the administration and management of of land held in trust by the United States for Native Americans in the United States, Native American...
.
Jerome's brother, Johnny Tiger, Jr.
Johnny Tiger, Jr.
-Background:Johnny Tiger Jr. was born in 1940 in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, the capitol of the Cherokee Nation. His parents were Loucine Lewis and the Reverend John M. Tiger. His younger brother, the late Jerome Tiger was a celebrated artist. As a child Johnny traveled with his grandfather Coleman...
and daughter, Dana Tiger. are successful artists. Jerome's other daughter, Lisa Tiger, is a prominent AIDS educator and activist as well as a motivational speaker.
See also
- Bacone schoolBacone schoolThe Bacone style or Bacone school of painting, drawing, and printmaking is a Native American Flatstyle art movement, primarily from the mid-20th century in Oklahoma...
- Muscogee (Creek) NationMuscogee (Creek) NationThe Muscogee Nation is a federally recognized tribe of Muscogee people, also known as the Creek, based in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. They are regarded as one of the historical Five Civilized Tribes and call themselves Este Mvskokvlke...
- List of Native American artists from Oklahoma
- Seminole Tribe of Oklahoma
Further reading
- Tiger, Peggy and Molly Babcock. The Life and Art of Jerome Tiger: From War to Peace, Death to Life. Norman: University of Oklahoma, 1980. ISBN 0806116560.
External links
- Jerome Tiger (1941 - 1967), Mid-America All Indian Center
- Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture - Jerome Richard Tiger