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Oklahoma City, OK - R. Poteet Victory hopes that, the combination of his artistic talents and European linen, he will be able to create a masterpiece in paint to the 'Trail of Tears' that will be a monument.

Victory said, "The whole point of this monument, this painting, is that the Trail of Tears, except for the Civil War, was probably the most important event in American history that helped shape what America was to become."

Victory plans to unveil his 50- by 25-foot art work at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., late next year. He wants the piece to tour for two years across the United States and maybe in Germany and Israel before it is brought to Oklahoma.

According to Victory the 50 by 25 feet painting will be unveiled late next year at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. Victory then plans a tour of the U.S. Germany and possibly Israel for about two years before the art work is presented to the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma (CNO). The 'Trail of Tears' painting is to be on loan to the CNO for 50 years.

Victory said that his motivation comes from the concern that there is not a lot of knowledge about the 'Trail of Tears". There were more than 40 tribes were involved in the federal government's removal and relocation of American Indians. According to Victory the painting will depict Indian birth, death and rebirth and will be laced with symbolism, much of which well be biblical.

The long trek from the southeast, known as the 'Trail where they cried' or better known as the 'Trail of Tears', to what was supposed to be Indian Country, now known as Oklahoma, took the lives of thousands of people of several Indian Nations. Among the tribes forced by the government to leave their home lands and walk the trail were the Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Seminole and Creek Indian Nations.

Oklahoma Arts Council Executive Director Betty Price, even though still in its early stages, called the painting a magnificent project. Price said, "This is very fresh and new", adding the she believes that the painting will draw people from all over the world to the state.

Victory is a native of Idabel, Oklahoma and is of Cherokee and Choctaw descent. Previous works include, 'Single Voice of the Coteri'; 44" x 32" painting done in oil, and 'Image of the Spirit', 44" x 32" painting done in acrylic. Reproductions of these works can be purchased online by way of The Blue Rain Gallery of Taos, New Mexico.