Only Buffaloes Can Call Buffaloes

Sarain Stump was born in Fremont, Wyoming in 1945, and moved to an Alberta ranch in 1964. His indigenous name was Sock-a-jaw-wu, meaning 'the one who pulls the boat'. He had little formal education and was encouraged to learn from his Shoshone-Cree elders. Stump promoted traditional Indigenous values and sought to help young Indigenous people retain pride in their heritage while dealing with a modern society. His paintings exhibit themes of Indigenous religion and history and modern urban struggles. He had a huge influence on Saskatchewan artists in the 1970s, and was the Indigenous art program co-ordinator at the Saskatchewan Indian Cultural College 1972-74, instructing such future art stars as Edward Poitras, Harry Laford and Ray McCallum. Sarain Stump passed away by drowning off the coast of Oaxaca, Mexico in 1974. A major exhibition of his work was held at Regina's Mackenzie Art Gallery in 2018.