At the Break of Dawn

This painting was inspired by a small photo card found in an antique store in Gardnerville, NV. The grainy photo depicted masked men posing, shears in hand, cutting fence in a vast pasture. The photo was etched with some limited information about the location. After researching further, it was found that the photo marked a period across Texas and Nebraska in the late 1800’s called the Fence Wars. Fence cutting was done by masked men who attempted to disguise their identities in disputes over land access between ranchers and locals.

This 3 × 4 card was inscribed as follows:

Settlers taking the law into their own hands

Brighton Ranch (Nebraska)) fence in 1885 (?)