Wright Patrol

"Thomas-Wright Patrol" by Thom Ross. Acrylic painting on canvas, 52" x 79". It depicts crouching American Indians in foreground with a column of troops in the distance. Pastel purples and tan hues.

The Thomas-Wright Battlefield was the fourth battle of the Modoc War and fought between a U.S. Army patrol led by Captain Evan Thomas and a small band of around 20 or 22 Modoc Indian warriors led by Scarfaced Charley.

Ross had what he describes as an "epiphany" on June 25, 1976, at the hundredth anniversary commemoration of Custer's Last Stand at the Battle of Little Bighorn, after sitting through a windstorm and observing protesters from the American Indian Movement as well as supporters of General George Armstrong Custer. He decided as an artist to portray iconic American people and events in new ways to bring out a more complex story than the traditional historical myths.