| dc.description.abstract | The life of Will James is one of mystery. His works, however, tell the story of a life he was meant to live. Born Joseph Ernest Nephtali Dufault in 1892 in Saint-Nazaire-d’Acton, the boy grew up yearning to be a cowboy. Dufault headed to western Canada in 1907 to fulfill his dream. By 1910 he had crossed the Canadian-United States border into Montana and changed his name to Will James. During his travels James managed to steal cattle, survive jail and a hospital stay, and attend art school. These events, and the people he encounter along the way, played an important role in his decision to become a full-time artist and author.
The individuals in the literary, artistic, and entertainment industries prior to James’s arrival laid the groundwork for the artist to extend and update the iconic cowboy imagery. Pining for the Old West, Will James illustrated the American cowboy before the effects of barbed wire and the automotive revolution took place. In his depictions the cowboy almost invariably accompanies the horse and cattle. To James the three were indispensable to his way of life. His drawings and paintings not only served as illustrations for the books and short stories he wrote but also helped shape and extend the historical, cultural, and mythological perceptions of the cowboy-hero in American culture.
The life and works of this forgotten legend have endured through avid collectors, artists, and historians. Marginalized to the far corners of western American art, Will James’s work endures, inspiring a new generation and creating a love for the Old West. | en_US |
