September, 2003 MAPS Meeting   Previous Page

Our September 23, 2003 MAPS Meeting was a lot of fun and included some intense painting moments! MAPS special guest, Jim "Two Crows" Wallen, returned to the MAPS group as both an entertainer and portrait subject. Two Crows came dressed in an authentic costume of George Shannon, a member of the Lewis & Clark Corps of Discovery. As George Shannon, Two Crows regaled the group with storytelling prowess relating one adventure after another of the 16-year-old explorer.

A brief summary of Jim's talk goes like this: "George Shannon was only 16 when Meriweather Lewis hired him to become part of the Corp of Discovery. Travel with him as he fights grizzlies, gets lost more than once in the wilderness, conquers the native trails to the Pacific and makes it back home."

We learned of George's escapades in the wilds of the Missouri River Valley, capturing prairie dog, magpie and other specimens to send back to President Thomas Jefferson. His opinions on his traveling companions, Captain Clark, Sacagawea, Charbouneau and York gave us a personal tour of history and the people involved.

As Jim told his stories, four MAPS members, Donna Yeager, Bev Amundson, Jerry Brown and Donna Aldridge painted his portrait and demonstrated their unique styles. Many other MAPS members took advantage of the colorful, willing subject and sketched or painted also. Below are pictures of the event.

Donna Yeager, Jerry Brown, Bev Amundson and Donna Aldridge paint Jim Wallen, clockwise above