BISMARCK, ND (PNAN) – On view at the North Dakota State Capitol, through December 2025, the exhibition, “Dakota Territory” is a collection of mixed media on canvas by North Dakota artist Chris Wakefield.
Featuring 30 of artist Wakefield’s works, “This show represents just a small cross section of my observations during my time here in the Dakota Territory,” says Wakefield. “It’s a portrayal of the beauty, wonder, romanticism, risk, danger, mystery, hope, and heartache all woven into the tapestry of this once very wild place.”
His artworks explores the layered history of the region, its landscapes, wildlife, and people. “These paintings are my contribution so that we take time to reflect and remember this grand ground, its wildlife, the people with names we know,” Wakefield expressed, including he adds, “along with the countless others whose names we will never know, but who all lived here and died here to make this the place we exist today.”
Influenced by a childhood shaped by pop culture, Wakefield describes his creative process as intuitive and expressive. “I just have fun, get lost in the color, throw paint on the canvas and see what happens,” he says. “It’s where I feel the happiest, like I’m doing what I was meant to do.”
The exhibit can be viewed on the observatory level of the 18th floor.