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According to art historian and biographer James Taylor Forrest, “Elling William (Bill) Gollings was an artist, a cowboy and a poet. He experienced the West at a time when there were still Cheyenne warriors, cattle drives, and cowboys chasing Longhorns across an open range. For years he was torn between his exciting cowboy life and his need to paint; he found harmony in combining the two.

“He was a true ’Ranahan,’ which meant ‘top hand’ in cowboy lingo. A cowboy on horseback, he gentled tough range horses, and he sketched and painted as he herded or tended cattle.”

PROVENANCE
The Artist
Wallace Campbell II, Galena, IL, circa 1924
Present owner, by descent

Condition ReportSurface condition is excellent. Painting has been lined. Several faint hairline cracks in sky. Several specks of inpainting in sky. Several specks of inpainting to left of cowboy, in cowboy’s hat, and below cowboy’s horse. Small spot of inpainting above cowboy’s knee. Small spot of inpainting to left of horse’s head.

Important Notice: Statements of condition are provided as a service to potential bidders; such statements are educated opinions and should not be regarded as facts. The Coeur d’Alene Art Auction has no responsibility for any errors or omissions.