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Show ID Vernal Express WExtesday, April 27, 1994 Of Utahn learns saddle making from Uintah's master artist Melanle Morrison Staff Writer Through a unique program offered of-fered by the Utah Arts Council, UAC, Paul Bouck of Salt Lake City, is learning the traditional art of saddle sad-dle making from Uintah County master artist, Jerry Stewart of Sawtooth Saddle Company in Dry Fork. Bouck has been working with Stewart for the past two weeks and is anticipating finishing his project this week. Bouck, who retired from Kennecot Copper Mines, has been involved with horses and saddles all his life. "My dad's uncle owned a saddle business in Salt Lake City. I remember going to the shop when I was young and smelling all the great smells associated with leather," His uncle's saddle shop closed in the 1960s after it was passed to his cousins. About seven years ago, Bouck's nephew was working as a cowboy on a ranch near the IdahoNevada border when he discovered some old saddles in a barn owned by his employer. After inquiring if he could have them, the employer agreed and Bouck's nephew brought them back to Salt Lake City. Bouck had done a small amount of leather work but nothing as extensive as a saddle, even though he had watched his great-uncle great-uncle work in the saddle shop as a young boy. Bouck and his nephew began carefully tearing down the saddles piccc-by-piccc; making note of each piece so they would be able to put the saddle back together. Patterns were made using the old leather pieces which, Bouck said, was real difficult. He went looking for some more leather and saw an advertisement for the Branding Iron, a western store in Salt Lake City, thai was going go-ing out of business so he decided to try there. He explained to the store owner what ttc was doing, and then was led to a back room where the owner had I small saddle shop. "You can have the holc shop for S3 50," the proprietor uid. "And at the point 1 pulled out my check book and bought the hop." Bouck Mid. Bouck explained that he hopes u pan this an form on to hit UHS piremrQDeirs Broadway mniMSDcal c(Goodllbye Giirl5 Mclant Mordaon S't WHIP JwJft ffin the rtattum t4 mc hih h4 iiirhu Mtly altrmt fatv a pit Stif t4 1? ytot'i fht, t'tftuh Mifft da drpaftmrti Ha it "TW r?irc Gt r? at JV p tti tV mUwrQ at fNc Nh kJk4 and i9 ten, tf. 'c t cMi" v4 Krt tv. 4tkv. "1lK w tte CWm te v Kcw '4 fig vm ih tiicw4y VttA H't 3kHt4 jn m a. We pnf w4 the S 4 M4 mtif vA4 be vi4Me M p- fig t t "4 m4 tM4 1 tym ri- jiiw. tW rrinti fAty h f liwn" w4 tinvt -V miiA f"f iSjn-i ftwAli iHI tr4 lx. TV6 PmStf put t-Vi V - fif r"rHI It Vhhi iw4 (WM Ha-'Qf!. HVjImi, town &rm, t m fjr 'ritJ, ! Mnac M!. t"W,if. rtr" iWf. vV m-i tr-i?-n.. 4,w w-hl tjpvn 1wf, I fWrlt CsA.. I -irn 1 x ,:--a t.-.-v m . , JERRY STEWART, master artist, explains to Paul Bouck, his apprentice, ap-prentice, the art of making a saddle. daughters and grandchildren. "I had a shop and 1 1 grandsons so I decided decid-ed I had better learn how to make saddles." Bouck attended a clinic presented by Jerry Stewart and Jeff Warburton of Sawtooth Saddle Company. It was during this clinic he learned about the apprenticeship program offered by the Utah Ans Council and applied for the program. "When 1 arrived here (Jerry's shop in Dry .Fork) I wiped everything every-thing I ever knew about making a saddle from my mind and am letting Jerry teach mc from scratch." Bouck said. Over the coune of the paa two weeks, Bouck tut wnuen several pages of notes and has taken piciurci to document hit progress in Clmt AUrn, Ktt Ffltey, Jeftl SirpVnw, Knarth4 rJey, IcUmJ Durtaftt, SHrlly Uun, MtfowiC liaftiian, fily 5khuT4 )Ciy Lltttd, tUnJnf Stx', Ala tlwrfattt, lof tluH Swy Wihf4 Trtuy t aJMfl, Tn4 KMVy, J tr lomi ri4 Jftfy tKifl it lff A,nr k. KU Ci)ie IMntA. IMtf Nm, VwTve wHf. Wr4, Ifc'WWJhf, t t Vl AjwIk S" Si? P-4 H it fi4itl I7 CVSf Ifc :... C1U4. tfnr AH fv a, A ( C-IR'. ffttlMt, f SrfH l3 Htv. fwl CVni f.r. tHf n m4 ?W f t tri54- f-c4trW4'4tl tf tl 0 tif t fi Hf V r f M ir i1rMt H1 flHI fVit fWn n !.. tnf Ot f t . f wltfc pwrtfii fnl ff,. TV x . .... , making his saddle. He has averaged nine to ten hours each day in the shop in order to complete his saddle in three weeks. He hopes to take what he has learned, the notes he has made and pictures he's taken back to his own shop so he can pass the an of saddle making on to his daughters and grandchildren. This year 14 traditional and ethnic master anisis will pass their skills on to accomplished apprentices through grants offered by the UAC Folk Ans Apprcnikeship Project. The project, being funded for the sixth year by the National Endowment for the Arts, was designed de-signed to auitt Utah's cultural communities com-munities in conserving and perpetuating perpetu-ating their own culturally expres ll,l,CW0 wUtfO 'iff 15 f-Tprf-eje-fei t -fH r v . 1 ,,. PAUL BOUCK carefully trims the edge of his saddle after receiving instructions from his teacher, teach-er, Jerry Stewart of Sawtooth Saddle Company sive an forms by offering financial support for custom-designed apprenticeships, ap-prenticeships, said Anne Hatch, program coordinator. "These partnerships represent the time honored apprentice tradition of learning an an form, one on one, from a master," Hatch continued. The Apprentice Program is exciting excit-ing and successful because it combines com-bines the tradition of passing on important im-portant cultural information and an forms from generation to generation with the intricacies of a modern society." so-ciety." Artists are chosen on the basis of artistic excellence, traditionally of the an form, feasibility of the project pro-ject and the shared cultural group of the master and apprenticeship. More than $18,000 has been granted grant-ed for the 14 apprentice ship that range in length from one to twelve months. The amounts range from S200 to S2JTJQ0. Other xkitlt perpetuated perpet-uated through this year's grant program pro-gram include divene musical tradi 6-i"tJ ft tsrytffcft IHhI W:t w-rrS Ef ti5, r r v 1 ! r tX , I 1 , u , , .1. - . j I J nl'. r;i t ! ! in Dry Fork. Bouck was awarded an apprenticeship apprentice-ship through the Utah Arts Council to learn saddle sad-dle making from Stewart. tions, ancient Samoan Dance and Tibetan and Navajo rug weaving, besides saddle making. Hatch visited Sawtooth Saddle Company this week to see the progress Bouck is making in his apprenticeship. ap-prenticeship. She said that this project pro-ject will be "one of our star apprenticeships appren-ticeships this year. It's exciting for me to be able to meet with some of the finest artists in the state." Pan of her position with the Utah Ans Council is to travel to different pans of the state and view, hands-on, the progress of the grants. Any arust can apply for an apprenticeship ap-prenticeship to the Utah Ans Council since not many traditional anisu can make a living from their an and many practice in their spare time. UAC recommends that the arud should apply first to make sure their an form Is eligible. The three-page application can be obtained ob-tained by ailing UAC in Sail Lake City at 533-5700 between 9 am. and 5 pm., Monday through Friday. 'rtf" w', r.m wmi- Tne application should be filled out by the teacher and apprentice at the same time. The deadline for applications appli-cations for next year's grants is Dec. 31, 1994, but they will accept applications appli-cations well in advance of that date. UAC would also like to see samples of the work from both the artist and apprentice. Samples can include the craft, a tape of music or singing, or even a video tape of dancing or other oth-er arts. Decisions are made by I committee commit-tee who carefully review each application appli-cation and sample. Artists are selected se-lected on the basis of: (a) how traditional tradi-tional their art is; (b) the quality of work of both the master and apprentice; appren-tice; (c) whether they share membership mem-bership in the same community or group; (d) how dedicated the apprentice ap-prentice is to the an form; and (c) how likely the timetable and work plan are to succeed. AH applicants will be notified of the committee's decision by March 1,1995. When tiled how be felt about Stewart. Bouck raponded, "Ik is a top notch teacher!" I |