Continued from Page 6
The tribal leaders and cultural specialists
spoke with enthusiasm about the fi nd and
the value of Landry’s artwork in March 2020
when they fi rst prepared the exhibit to open.
But COVID-19 delays have an unex-
pected positive outcome.
In the interim, after publicity regarding
the project, Shoalwater and Quinault house-
holds stepped up to share their personal
Landry art.
A person from out of state donated a
Landry painting from 1963 that her father
had bought at auction. And, thanks to an
online appeal that asked for information
about unidentifi ed portraits, artist’s mod-
els from the 1960s and 1970s, now elders,
shared memories which are incorporated into
the revised exhibit.
Judith Altruda
‘Phoenix’
Landry was married for seven years to
Sharon Billingsley, an artist and model. They
traveled to Paris, Mexico and the Philip-
pines to study art and visit professional heal-
ers. He later operated a gallery in California.
In 1965, they both painted their versions of a
still life. These canvasses have been reunited
for the exhibit.
Photography by tribal member Erik San-
chez is also displayed. Sanchez, a fi lm-
making student at the Institute of American
Fred Landry and his son, Eugene, are pictured in the dome in 1976, where the artist painted
much of his work.
Shoalwater Bay tribal member Mary Downs
holds the portrait that Gene Landry painted
of her in 1969. It is displayed with other
restored works in the exhibit.
Indian Arts, has worked on a documen-
tary about Landry; a version appears on
YouTube.
The Shoalwater Tribe incorporated the
Lower Chehalis, Shoalwater Bay and Chi-
nookan people; the reservation earned its
federal designation in 1866.
Eugene Landry’s distinctive signature.
Don Norkoski
Last year, Charlene Nelson, Shoalwater
Bay chairwoman, described the exhibit as,
“bringing back part of our history.” Altruda
has a similar view. “Like a phoenix rising
from the ashes, the art serves as a testament
to the enduring power of the human spirit,”
she noted.
Patrick Webb
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