T. C. Cannon

Kiowa/ Caddo/ Choctaw, 1946-1978

Birth PlaceLawton, Oklahoma, United States, North America

Death PlaceSanta Fe, New Mexico, United States, North America

BiographyPainter of modern Indian figure, genre, graphics.

Tommy Wayne Cannon,1946–1978, was an important Native American artist of the 20th century. An enrolled member of the Kiowa Tribe with Caddo and French descent and he was popularly known as T.C. Cannon. Cannon grew up in Zodaltone and Gracemont, Oklahoma. His Kiowa name, Pai-doung-a-day, means "One Who Stands in the Sun." He was exposed and influenced by the art of the Kiowa Six. T .C. Cannon enrolled in the Institute of American Indian Arts of Santa Fe in 1964, where he studied under Fritz Scholder (Luiseño). After graduating from IAIA, he enrolled in the San Francisco Art Institute but left after two months and enlisted in the army. As paratrooper in the 101st Airborne Division, Cannon was sent to Vietnam from 1967 to 1968. During the Tet Offensive, he earned two Bronze Star Medals. He was also inducted into the Black Leggings Society, the traditional Kiowa warriors' society. While still stationed in Vietnam, Cannon had a breakthrough in his art career. Rosemary Ellison, curator of the Southern Plains Indian Museum in Anadarko, Oklahoma, included him in a major traveling exhibit, Contemporary Southern Plains Indian Art. Cannon painted murals at the United Indians of All Tribes Foundation and the Daybreak Star Cultural Center in Seattle, Washington, and the Santa Fe Opera Guild.

Person TypeIndividual