09/24/2025
Keith Jackson: Knight Riders on view
A self-taught painter, Jackson was raised on a crop and small livestock farm in rural Missouri and spent many years working as a building contractor. Born in 1966 during the golden age of westerns, he fondly recalls playing with friends’ horses and watching reruns of Gunsmoke and The Wild Wild West. Like many kids of that era, he dreamed of becoming a cowboy. But as Jackson reflects, “the cowboys on TV didn’t look like me.” The screen was dominated by white actors—even in roles portraying Native peoples—while the true history of Black cowboys was largely erased from popular media. This portrayal, however, was far from accurate.
It is estimated that one in four cowboys in the Old West were African American. After The Emancipation Proclamation was signed, many formerly enslaved people sought new opportunities in the cowboy profession. Not only was this one of the few areas where they could achieve a degree of autonomy and economic independence, but many were already highly skilled in horsemanship, cattle handling, roping and more. The remarkable contributions of figures like Nat Love, Bass Reeves, and Bill Pickett, solidify their status as heroes of the American Old West.
Image 1:
Detail, Bill Pickett, Dark Knights, 2025
Image 2:
Dark Knights, 2025
Oil on canvas
72 x 84 inches
Image 3:
Detail, Bass Reeves, Dark Knights, 2025
Image 4:
Show Em, 2025
Oil on canvas
60 x 48 inches
Image 5:
Detail, Nat Love, Show Em, 2025
Image 6:
Busted, 2025
Oil on canvas
60 x 48 inches
Image 7:
Detail, Bass Reeves, Busted, 2025
Image 8:
Bulldog, 2025
Oil on canvas
60 x 48 inches
Image 9:
Detail, Bill Pickett, Bulldog, 2025
Image 10:
Where Courage Sits, 2025
Oil on canvas
72 x 84 inches
Image 11:
Detail, Where Courage Sits, 2025
Image 12:
Detail, Where Courage Sits, 2025
Image 13:
Urban Cowboy, 2025
Oil on canvas
60 x 48 inches
Image 14:
Detail, Urban Cowboy, 2025
