I AM ONLY A CRAFTSMAN

A Film About the Legacy and Tradition of Wyoming and Japanese Leather Carving

James F. Jackson, Sheridan, Wyoming, USA.

James is a 2019 recipient of the National Heritage Fellowship, the United States’ highest honor in the traditional arts. After more than four decades at King’s Saddlery, Jackson became one of the most influential figures in Sheridan Style leather carving. In addition to his leather work, he is an accomplished painter and muralist whose work explores the cultures, histories, and landscapes of the American West and the world beyond. He currently serves as Artist-in-Residence at the Brinton Museum in Big Horn, Wyoming.

Taka Otsuka, Ashikaga, Tochigi, Japan

Taka is one of the leading practitioners of Sheridan Style leather carving in the world. Inspired by American Western culture and the work of craftsmen such as Don King and Jackson, Otsuka dedicated his life to the craft after leaving a corporate career. Through decades of teaching, mentoring, and artistic innovation, he has helped introduce and expand Sheridan Style throughout Japan and across Asia. Known for his humility and devotion to traditional craftsmanship, he continues to train apprentices and create intricately carved works from his workshop in Japan.

Wyoming and Japan: Cultural Connections

The floral patterns that you would see on the saddles, belts, boots and other everyday items associated with the cowboy’s way of life conveyed a certain character that many Japanese found attractive. When these “Western Style” patterns began showing up on purses, wallets and belts in Japan in the late 1940’s and early 1950’s, there was a surge of interest in floral carving on leather items. Today, if you walk into most any leather shop in Japan and mention “Sheridan style tooling,” the leather workers will most likely know you are talking about a particular style of carving that developed in Northern Wyoming.
Master craftsmen hone their trade at the Leather Shop at the Brinton Museum and King’s Saddlery, while the global leather industry visits Sheridan every may for the Rocky Mountain Leather Trade Show, presented by the Leather Crafter’s Journal.

The Sheridan County Experience

The world comes out west expecting to see cowboys driving horses through the streets of downtown; pronghorn butting heads on windswept bluffs; the towering pinnacles of the Bighorn Mountains; and endless expanses of wild, open country. These are some of the fibers that have been stitched together over time to create the patchwork quilt of Sheridan’s identity, each part and parcel to the Wyoming experience.

What you may not have been expecting when you came out west was a thriving, historic down-town district, with western allure, hospitality, and good graces to spare; a vibrant arts scene; bombastic craft culture; a robust festival and events calendar; and living history on every corner. You will find all the rugged terrain you could ever dream about out here, but you’ll never find yourself lacking for the creature comforts of a modern western city. Sure, you’ll see cowboys, and fellas who play cowboys on TV.