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About The Artist 
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The “I Am An American” bronze sculpture owes it’s beginnings to a winter carnival in McCall, Idaho where local artist, John Gilliam made a 9’x9’ sculpture
out of ice. Interestingly, some ideas that are purely coincidental in behavior turn into inspirational creations.
Having noticed the negative publicity that our soldiers were experiencing in Afghanistan and Iraq, artist Gilliam decided to show a
different side. His approach was to present a very specific reflection of the American soldier that has been a part of our band of citizen soldiers since the beginning
of our nation, yet often overlooked.
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Our young men and women of the military are constantly facing situations that place them in harms way, but still they are
willing to sacrificially help those unfortunate victims of war
In the “I Am An American” sculpture, a young injured child is held in the arms of an American soldier. This young man
represents so many of our soldiers who come from every State in our nation. Perhaps he is from your State, your County,
your City, Town or rural community. In the midst of the turmoil of war, he offers comfort to a child. This is a picture of the
humanity of our soldiers that is not often presented for our viewing by the news media. We are so fortunate to have an artist
that can capture that inspiration and tell us a story worth hearing, seeing and feeling.
The bronze sculpture was designed by John Gilliam. Mr. Gilliam is the owner of The Bear Paw Studio in Lenore, Idaho.
John was raised on a cow ranch in Northern Arizona and has used his first hand accounts of growing up in the wide open
spaces and working as a cowhand to create his art. As John recalls, it was a hard life but one that has lasting memories
of mockingbirds singing, coyotes howling, and cows bawling. These life experiences have inspired his love for bronze art.
And as you can see, John has learned his craft well. Self taught for the most part, John and his wife Judy moved to
Northern Idaho in 1983 to build their dream home, raise five sons, and concentrate on his art. Art has since been his prime
objective. His artistic talent in bronze art has brought him acclaim not only in the western art galleries, but also in the art
world of beautiful religious sculptures.
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