Tony Weldon, (“Two Feather”), Native American Indian Artist

Meaning of the Native American Name:

Two Feathers

High honor, power, wisdom, trust, strength, and freedom. Seen as gifts from the sky.

I was told in my teen years from my grandfather that we are of Cherokee descent. He showed me pictures of my Great Grandmother Blizzard. He said that being an Indian was not look upon as a good thing. My Great Grandmother married an Irish man named John Weldon, so that people would not know she was a Cherokee. This sparked my interest to learn more about the Cherokees and other tribes. This is how my focus on the Native American started at a very young age and there is still so much more to learn and paint.

All my life, I have loved drawing, painting, and listening to my grandfather tell me about his mother, Blizzard, who was Cherokee.

He told me that his father was Irish and left Blizzard and him, along with his three brothers.

My grandfather told me that his mother was a very hard worker, but never told me what

her job was.

In school, art class was my favorite.

Numbers and letters seemed to flip on pages to me. It made sense after being diagnosed, Dyslexic. I earned a scholarship and graduated at Ringling School of Art, in Sarasota, FL.

My passion for drawing and painting focuses on Native People because of my grandfather,

and his mother, Blizzard.

My admiration and respect are depicted in my artwork of all Native American tribes and heritages. I want to show not only portraits of the many Native American tribes, but also the life they had and have, along with nature and the landscape. I study and do research on each Native American I want to paint and draw. I want to make sure that the clothing, the colors, and the landscape are correct. I am a Cherokee fine artist, but I am also an historian, telling a story about each person and tribe. Even though there are many tribes, we are all one.

I have done artwork my whole life. I was encouraged by my fifth-grade teacher to continue to draw. She said that she felt I had the talent to be more and do more with my art. I graduated from Reinhardt College with an associate degree in Fine Arts. I then went to The Ringling College of Art and received a bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts. I have a piece in the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC on permanent display. The Smithsonian piece is a graphite Illustration of a young Native American Boy intently listening, as eagles in different stages of flight are above his head. The art piece is called, "Learning How to Fly". I also have two pieces in the Booth Western Museum in Cartersville, Georgia on Permanent display. The first art pieces are an Acrylic Painting of an Apache Woman up against a canyon wall with the wind blowing. That art piece is called, "Strong Woman", and the other art piece is of a warrior on horseback looking down at the viewer. That art piece is called, "The Watcher". My artwork is collected in many states in the USA and in London England. I also have a collector here in Tampa.