Buffalo Springs Lake – Second Visit, Ransom Canyon Closed

Visited on site: [7/19/2025]

Change of Plans

This painting was meant for Ransom Canyon — a site historically tied to Comanche hostage negotiations. But when I arrived, I found it was all private property. I couldn’t paint there without giving up the rights to the artwork. That was a line I wouldn’t cross.

Returning to the Springs

I came back to Buffalo Springs Lake. It’s public. It’s open. It still sits in the flow of Comanche history. The wind came down through the canyon walls just as it had before — and the second painting came together under different terms, but not without meaning.

What Was Lost and Gained

Though I couldn’t paint where the hostages may have been traded, the springs nearby still carry that story. The land connects. What mattered then still echoes here — in access, in boundaries, in who owns the past.

Artist’s Reflection

I was turned away from Ransom Canyon — not by warriors, but by fences.

So I returned to where I was welcome. To paint. To remember. To speak.

The land doesn’t always say yes. But it always holds the story.