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A rare and unusual exhibit, of the Red River War, has found its way into the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum (PPHM).

A Running Fight: The Red River War in Art, as it’s been labeled, “Is the first of its kind to focus particularly on the art of the Red River War,” said Michael Grower, curator of the PPHM. Bit and pieces of The Red River War have been displayed in other exhibits and galleries, but a complete collection has never been taken on until now.

An estimated 15 to 20 different artists have lent their artistic hands to create this exhibit, but that’s not what makes this event exactly unique.

“The fact that these artists are less well-known, in terms of the works they did, is what’s interesting because we wanted to do something no one else has done before.”

This exhibition has not only caught the attention of people in the area, but also on a global scale.

“We had people from all around the world come in here, and they really did not realize how valuable this part of Texas is to the history of this country,” Grower said.

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“Unfortunately, artists for the most part, have focused on things in the northern plains such as Custards Last Stand, the Battle of Little Big Horne and other battles that happened up there, but roughly around the same time things were happening down here as well.
”The Red River War took place in the exact same five states that the PPHM blankets: New Mexico, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas.

The campaign for this exhibition has been in works for about three years, but the compiling of different types of art for the event has taken about a decade.
Various artists from coast to coast can be seen at this exhibition as well.

“The Red River War is quite popular in the region, and people are proud of their history here. The exhibit so far has been very well received and much anticipated before we even opened it,” Grower said.

Both Anglo and Native American artists have contributed to give the exhibition a well-rounded display of culture. There was even a Comanche who has come into the exhibition to bless it with smoke, burnt from sage and cedar.

Grower says that the Adobe Walls Battle site paintings are special to him because of their history.

“These two paintings are 100 years apart, one was created in 1911 and the other about 2006; but that one was not finished because the artist passed away.

How they approached their art in two different ways was most interesting to me.”

“The rifle gun display seems to draw people in, especially men,” Donald Sechler, museum security officer, said. “People seem to always read books about

Wild West, and they don’t realize that this museum and exhibit is part of the Wild West.”

“Not everybody can see this kind of history unfold, especially in pictorial forms, like we have here in the galleries,” Sechler said.

This exhibition will be on display in the PPHM until February 2010.