Gregory Perillo captures the saga of the American Indian. Born in 1929 in New York City, he started studying art when he was 10 years old. His father, an Italian immigrant, loved art and American history. Every Sunday, he would take his son to the museums and at night he would tell him stories about the American West.

At seventeen, he joined the Navy and was assigned as a cartoonist. The G.I. Bill paid for studies at Pratt Institute, The School of Visual Arts, and the Art Students League. In 1950 he met William Leigh and studied with him for five years.

Perillo’s interest in Indians continued to grow. He traveled to Nevada, Wyoming and Arizona to learn more about their customs and manner of living. He lived for weeks at a time on Indian reservations to sketch and make friends with the residents. Every year he travels to the West to stay for three or four months. His art authentically portrays the Sioux, the Cheyenne, the Apache and the Blackfoot, occasionally, he does a ranch subject. In the 1970’s, he began making sculpture.

His art is reproduced on collector’s plates and as figurines.