Jerome Richard Tiger (July 8, 1941 – August 13, 1967) was a Muscogee Creek- Seminole

painter Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...

from

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

.Jerome Tiger (1941–1967)

Mid-America All Indian Center
(accessed May 25, 2010). 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.

Early life

Born in Tahlequah, Oklahoma on July 8, 1941, Tiger attended public schools in

Eufaula, Oklahoma Eufaula is a city and county seat of McIntosh County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 2,813 at the 2010 census, an increase of 6.6 percent from 2,639 in 2000. Eufaula is in the southern part of the county, north of McAlester and ...

and

Muskogee, Oklahoma Muskogee () is the thirteenth-largest city in Oklahoma and the county seat of Muskogee County. Home to Bacone College, it lies approximately southeast of Tulsa. The population of the city was 36,878 as of the 2020 census, a 6.0 percent decrease ...

.Hunt, Dave C.,
Tiger, Jerome Richard (1941–1967)
"
Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture
'' (accessed May 25, 2010). 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 Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

, but dropped out after one year. Tiger married Peggy Richmond and they had three children.

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, Oklahoma. 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

.Tiger, Jerome RichardNative Arts of America
(accessed May 25, 2010). Tiger was compared to

Rembrandt Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (, ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), usually simply known as Rembrandt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman. An innovative and prolific master in three media, he is generally consid ...

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.

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 National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Philbrook and Gilcrease Museums in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the OSU Museum of Art in Stillwater, Oklahoma, the

Five Civilized Tribes Museum The Five Civilized Tribes Museum in Muskogee, Oklahoma, showcases the art, history, and culture of the so-called "Five Civilized Tribes": the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Muscogee (Creek), and Seminole tribes. Housed in the historic Union Indi ...

, the

Woolaroc Museum Woolaroc is a museum and wildlife preserve located in the Osage Hills of Northeastern Oklahoma on Oklahoma State Highway 123 about southwest of Bartlesville, Oklahoma, and north of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Woolaroc was established in 1925 as the ranch ...

near Bartlesville, Oklahoma, the Museum of New Mexico in

Santa Fe, New Mexico Santa Fe ( ; , Spanish for 'Holy Faith'; tew, Oghá P'o'oge, Tewa for 'white shell water place'; tiw, Hulp'ó'ona, label=Tiwa language, Northern Tiwa; nv, Yootó, Navajo for 'bead + water place') is the capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico. ...

, the Museum of the American Indian and the

Bureau of Indian Affairs The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), also known as Indian Affairs (IA), is a United States federal agency within the Department of the Interior. It is responsible for implementing federal laws and policies related to American Indians and A ...

. Jerome's brother

Johnny Tiger, Jr. Johnny Moore Tiger Jr. (Muscogee Creek-Seminole), (February 13, 1940 – August 5, 2015) was a Native American artist from Oklahoma.Lester, 557 Background Johnny Moore Tiger Jr. was born on February 13, 1940 in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. His parents ...

and daughter

Dana Tiger Dana Tiger (born 1961) is a Muscogee artist of Seminole and Cherokee descent from Oklahoma. Her artwork focuses on portrayals of strong women. She uses art as a medium for activism and raising awareness. Tiger was inducted into the Oklahoma Women' ...

are successful artists. His son Chris, who was a budding artist, was killed in 1990. Jerome's other daughter, Lisa Tiger, is a prominent AIDS educator and activist as well as a motivational speaker.
''Lisa Tiger HIV/AIDS Educator'' (retrieved May 26, 2010) In addition to his immediate family, many of Tiger's relatives were also artists, including Edmond Joshua, Jr. (1936–2005) and his brother

Lee Roy Joshua Jerome Richard Tiger (July 8, 1941 – August 13, 1967) was a Muscogee Creek- Seminole painter from Oklahoma.

(died 2001). Both were primarily painters working in oil, acrylic, watercolor and other media, and Edmond also worked in sculpture.

References

External links

Official website
maintained by

Jerome Tiger (1941–1967)
Mid-America All Indian Center

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tiger, Jerome 1941 births 1967 deaths People from Tahlequah, Oklahoma Native American painters Painters from Oklahoma Seminole Nation of Oklahoma people Accidental deaths in Oklahoma Deaths by firearm in Oklahoma United States Navy sailors United States Navy reservists Firearm accident victims in the United States Native American military personnel Muscogee (Creek) Nation people

Early life

Artistic career

Death and legacy

See also

References

Further reading

External links