In 1989, I was invited to photograph the American Indian Dance Theater dancers at the Joyce Theater in NYC.  A unique set of prints of my portraits were auctioned to benefit the American Indian College Fund. This set of prints was later published in a museum catalogue for an exhibition in Brescia, Italy. A friend in Santa Fe, New Mexico was an acquaintance of man described as a long-distance horseman – a man who lectured widely on the fur-trade era of American history. Jeff Hengesbaugh became perhaps the best known trader of fur trade artifacts in the world. Having been introduced to Jeff in 1990, he invited me to return and photograph a mountain man rendezvous and over mountain horse ride from Glorieta to the Plaza in Santa Fe.  I was present that morning to photograph my first group of portraits of these remarkably authentic fur-trade enthusiasts. These folks brain-tanned their own hides, were expert powder gun marksmen and horsemen and women.  This led to being invited to spend a week at a much larger encampment at Fort Bridger, Wyoming where I extended my portrait series. This was later followed by several days at another encampment at Tehachapi in California. 

This work was printed in my wet lab in the early 90s as toned, 16×20 gelatin-silver prints. I’m working with Jeff Hengesbaugh to put the story of the fur-trade era, via these portraits and still-lifes of the astounding Hengesbaugh collection of artifacts and his text into book form.