Distinctly Montana Magazine

D I S T I N C T LY M O N TA N A • S P R I N G 2 0 1 6 42 Fortunately for the artist, he wasn't 'invalided' enough to prevent him from continuing with his Little Bighorn project. e piece, rendered in oil on canvas, was completed in the last month of 1899. It measures just under six feet in height and almost nine feet in length. Custer's widow, Elizabeth Bacon Custer, reportedly broke into tears upon her encounter with Paxson's creation. at said, she was known to display strong reactions to any Little Bighorn depiction — understandably, one might add. Immediately popular, the painting was sent to cities on the East Coast as part of an touring exhibition, at which each viewer was charged 25 cents to behold a visual that was as close as it came to having been at the battle. ere are over 200 meticulously-crafted combatants in Custer's Last Stand. With a painting so densely packed, one possible critique is that there is simply too much on the canvas, that the viewer is oversaturated by a subject matter that descends into chaos. In fairness to Paxson, though, chaotic is how the battle was. First exhibited under the title, Custer's Last Battle on the Little Big Horn, Paxson copyrighted his painting as Custer's Last Fight. Later on, however, he seems to have preferred Custer's Last Stand, which is the title now typically used. Paxson, who moved to Missoula in 1905, where he would live for the rest of his life, went on to serve as Vice President of the National Society of Artists. More specifically to Montana, he rendered six murals for the State Capitol building and eight murals for the Missoula County Courthouse. Despite his northern New York roots, Paxson came to view himself essentially as a native son of Montana. He was regarded by others as a Montanan success story, an intrepid pioneer who ventured to the frontier and attained excellence by dint of his own talents and disciplined hard work. Paxton rendered six murals for the State Capitol building and eight murals Buffalo Hunt, 1905, oil on canvas, 26" x 38", permanent collection of Buffalo Bill Center of the West Watch a film about the Battle of the Bighorn: www.distinctlymontana.com/bighorn162 DISTINCTLY MONTANA | DIGITAL

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