Monte Yellow Bird (Black Pinto Horse)

​Monte Yellow Bird is a member of the Arikara and Hidatsa Nation from Fort Berthold Reservation, Whiteshield, N.D. He signs artwork with the name he was given through ceremony, Black Pinto Horse. Within his lifetime, he has experienced life through a series of passions that have assisted to define & redefine him as a teacher, horse trainer, educator, martial and visual artist.

Black Pinto Horse creates to educate and shares, “There are so many stories untold- the issues we face, the incongruities that have occurred, our history and the true heartbeat of our heritage.  At its core, lies a harmonic balance between humanity and nature which I like to showcase using color representation and symbolism.”                         

His artwork stands as a perfect example of how Yellow Bird has been subtly but powerfully transforming ledger art, an American Indian medium more than a century and a half old, into a means of expression perfectly attuned to observing and commenting on the world today. “To put something on paper like this,” he says, “can help bad things lose power over us and help good things gain power in our lives. We can all develop narratives that help us understand some of the difficulties we face.

ART HAS always played a key role in bringing Yellow Bird a feeling of understanding and strength in a sometimes-precarious world. 

Click here to see his art.

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