On First Friday, Dec. 1, from 5 to 8 p.m., Turquoise Tortoise Gallery will welcome back Michael Horse, widely recognized for revitalizing interest in the “ledger art” style of American Indian painting. He will give an artist talk at 5:45 p.m.

His distinctive watercolor paintings, which pay homage to the two-dimensional, reservation-era style and make often pointed statements of their own, have been exhibited at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. and the Heard Museum in Phoenix. In 1997, Horse had a 20-year retrospective of his work featured at Los Angeles’ Southwest Museum.

Now, 20 years later, Horse continues to lead the field in exploring, with ever-evolving nuance, what has come to be acknowledged as a type of “internment art” — from an era of struggle and transition which continues to echo across generations.

Horse describes ledger art paintings as a type of American Indian folk art that started in the mid‑1800s and was traditionally an art form of the Plains Indians. The images document what was going on in “Indian Country” from a Native perspective.

From a talented family of jewelers, potters and painters, Horse is also a skilled jeweler particularly known for his extraordinary sterling silver with turquoise katsina pendants, cuffs and rings.

Mark the calendars and stop by Turquoise Tortoise Gallery on 1st Friday evening to meet Michael Horse, artist, actor and activist; hear his artist talk at 5:45 p.m.; and see new paintings and jewelry unveiled.

Michael Horse: Life on Ledgers runs through December.

Turquoise Tortoise Gallery is at Hozho, 431 State Route 179 in Sedona. Hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday.

Contact mail@TurquoiseTortoiseGallery.com, 282-2262 or TurquoiseTortoiseGallery.com for more information.