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Texas
| Images
THE COWBOY
SILHOUETTE
"Don't be fooled
by cheap imitations"
"They" can go. "Tres Amigos" can stay.
by John
Troesser
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Cowboys
for all seasons: Bob Hext's "Tres Amigos" in the
snow
Photo Courtesy Keith "Kchisos" Williams |
You've seen him
if you've driven through the country. He's a booted and hatted cowboy,
leaning up against a building or fence post with no visible means
of support other than his fence post.
Who is he? He's whoever you want him to be. Slim Pickens or Rowdy
Yates. Jack Palance or Jon Voight. He could be waiting for the last
round up, or waiting for Godot. He could be waiting for high noon,
or he's a desperado waiting for a train. He's certainly a midnight
cowboy, for he's usually a man in black. Somehow we think he's related
to the serape-clad, sombreroed Mexicans who've been reclining against
cacti on Mexican restaurant signs ever since Independence. |
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Desperados
waiting for (or digesting) Barbecue -
Sealy, Texas
TE Photo |
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If the neighborhood
he's found in is more country than western, he may have just told
his boss to take his job and shove it and what he's waiting for
is not the last round-up, but his last pay check. He might be an
urban cowboy who's been locked out of his trailer, or maybe he's
got to roll-his-own outside because Miss Kitty doesn't allow smoking
in the Long Branch anymore.
Sometimes he's
seen wearing a cloth bandana, which some people think is the finishing
touch. These are the same people who tie bandanas around their dog's
necks. We think it's Ralph Lauren.
Is he a tragic figure? Are his days numbered? Will he be the first
21st century totem to walk the lonely road to oblivion? That road
that's littered with BABY ON BOARD! signs and Beanie Babies? Or
will he endure like the pink flamingo and the painted concrete deer?
If it weren't
for his cowboy hat, he might seem more menacing. His slouch tells
us he's not energetic enough to be a burglar, or maybe he's differently-abled
from bull riding.
We've even seen
variations on this theme. There's the Midnight Cowgirl, who isn't
quite as popular. Her posture and one-foot-prop make her look like
Irma La Douce or the statue of Selena in Corpus Christi.
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Functional
Art in Hico
TE Photo
While
we're on the subject - we'd like to applaud the (non-West Texas)
towns of Hico and Glen Flora for their functional metal sculptures
in the form of benches.
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There's the even-less
menacing silhouette of a slouch-hatted, waving man, whose physique
tells you he's past middle age. His other arm is clutching the fence-post
for support. Whatever reason there is for buying a James Drury/Dean
cowboy silhouette, we'd really like to hear the reason for buying
one of these. In the Martha Stewart Yard Ornament catalog he's probably
called the "Wal-Mart Greeter." Between Giddings and Elgin, Texas on
Hwy 290, there's actually both a "Greeter" and a cowboy on the same
fence line. They're about 150 feet away from each other and the old
man seems to be trying to get the attention of the cowboy. Maybe he
wants him to help move a silhouette piano into the silhouette bunkhouse.
Why would people, most of whom prefer not to have people (cowboys
or otherwise) loitering around their house, pay good money for an
imitation loiterer? Does putting one of these in your front yard tell
real cowboy loiterers to "move on, this place is taken"? Or is it
used as a decoy to attract other cowboy-loiterers so that they can
be shot and put in the crawl space? |
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Fort
Stockton Version of Cowboy Silhouette.
A great improvement.
TE Photo |
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| Since we're always
looking for the good in things here at TE, let us say that even though
we don't like the cowboy silhouette, we have to applaud the variation
we saw in Fort Stockton recently. Black Bart is produced so that he
can blend in with (or stand out on) the omnipresent icon of West Texas
- the windmill. It makes us glad for the thought that went into it
and it makes us happy that Bart is finally showing a little energy
and making himself useful. Perhaps there's a silhouette of an oilcan
in his back pocket. While this variation is priced about the same
as the "traditional" silhouette, the windmill accessory adds to the
price. |
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Tres
Amigos in front of Alpine Chamber of Commerce,
Sculpture by Bob Hext
TE Photo September 2000 |
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The Cowboy
Silhouette as Art. "Tres Amigos" by Sul Ross State University
Art Director Bob Hext is what people would really like to have in
their yard.
Tres Amigos
was done from life, with three real local cowboys posing for the
sculpture, although it is a bit larger-than-life. Mr. Hext has graciously
sent us a photo as the sculpture appeared when it was installed.
Tres Amigos has also been included in the book A Guide to Outdoor
Sculpture in Texas. The sculpture is also known as "The All-American
Cowboy" since the figures are painted red, white and blue and
will appear in that order of color if they're viewed from left or
right.
It stands in front of the Alpine Chamber of Commerce, where
a tree now appears to be blocking their line of sight (something
cowboys hate). We hope that when the Alpine Chamber gets its new
director, that one of the first things they do is to raise the branches
on that tree, so that visitors to Alpine can appreciate this sculpture
as it was intended.
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Tres
Amigos
Courtesy of Bob Hext (third from left) |
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