Houston Clay Dahlberg (Texas, 1946-2021), "Between a Rock and a Hard Place", bear attacking cowboy, artist-cast bronze sculpture on wooden base, with incised signature, edition number 3/40, and date, 1999

height 26 in. x width 16 in. x depth 16 in. 

Provenance: Property from the personal collection of George Gillespie, the largest registered longhorn rancher in the United States, from his ranch in Burnet, Texas

Houston Clay Dahlberg was a largely self-taught Western sculptor whose artistic vision grew from his childhood experiences on his great-grandfather’s ranch near Cotulla, Texas, and his later work as a rodeo cowboy, feed salesman, and horseshoer. A chance encounter with a Western sculptor at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo around 1970 inspired him to pursue fine art, after which he developed the technical skills of sculpture through sustained independent study and practice. His work is rooted in an authentic knowledge of horses, ranch life, and the working West, initially focusing on cowboys and horses before expanding to Native American warriors, Mexican pistoleros, hunters, fishermen, ranch children, and other historical and contemporary Western subjects. Known for celebrating the spirit and traditions of the American West, Dahlberg worked in bronze across formats ranging from miniature sculptures to monumental compositions. His sculpture was selected for the first all-sculpture exhibition at the National Cowboy Hall of Fame and Western Heritage Center, and his work was included in XIT, The American Cowboy; in 1974, In a Storm received Best of Show at the Texas Cowboy Artists Association Annual Award Exhibition, and in 1976 he was invited by the American Revolution Bicentennial Committee to represent Texas in Philadelphia. His sculpture is held in private and public collections in the United States and Europe, and he has completed numerous significant public and institutional commissions.