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Narrative:
"A man on a horse is spiritually, as well as physically, bigger than a man on foot." ~ John Steinbeck

John had it right for sure if he only looked at the past, such as most of us do, and so I claim perhaps, maybe, a little short-sighted considering the era when he wrote this in 1937, in the 'Red Ponies'.

The premise of that novel is the classic tale of a young boy's coming of age and his initiation into manhood. The short-sightedness I claim is the gorilla-in-the-room parallel of how he failed to envision in these same moments the world he knew was quickly being swept into initiation of the motor-and-pony show, that only the true entrepreneurs and sophisticates could see...that beast labor and transportation was on its way out, a true coming of age as any other industrialized invention.

At the time of this novel, the motor car was being produced with some of the most modern appointments boasted, including electric ignition starters (1911), cigarette lighters (1921), car radio!!! (1930), coil spring suspension (1934), and not to long after, true security with the advent of car keys (1949). Indeed, the man on horse may be spiritually bigger than the man on foot, but what about the man of coil-spring suspension and a car radio?!?!
This is a modern-day image (although modern is subjective), from John Ford Point, Monument Valley. John Ford near single-handily put the west on the map for people of these same ages, directing and filming nine 'classic' tales of the west...who cares that some of the stories actually occurred up to 500 miles away...and later John Wayne himself is quoted for saying about one of Ford's movies: "Monument Valley, where God Put the West".

From the perspective of wishing to create more editorial nature blended with my artwork, I wished to capture the duality of times, of needs, of desires for feeling, and with that the duality of planes the two forces create in time (perhaps more), then-before, here-now, and always-thus.

While my man was paid for the right to capture this image, I saw much more at stake. I saw the wrestling of tradition vs...well, whatever you choose to call it. The sign nearby read "$5 Man On Horse picture", and he wanted $120 from me and all my focal-lengthed adornments. I politely refused while yet understanding the need. After minutes of gazing at each other and the landscape with few words, other than spiritual-honored politeness, he chimed in with $60, and I said "That is what I was thinking."

To articulate what was going on for me, and I claim for him too, was that worlds collide and we are all changed from one polar side to another in the struggle of living tradition vs. a need to witness the parody of it. As this Native American son of the west sat on his horse waiting, in the leading roadside distance the vehicles of modern age come back and forth in a hopeful time to witness and record what they can of their awesomeness on Instagram and the like - while he sits there watching and awaiting their arrival.

It's just another day in the lives of men and monuments.