Wampus Cat

Deep in the rolling mountains of Western North Carolina, a tribe of Cherokee men gathered for a sacred ceremony. The tribal women were excluded, yet a young wife is bursting with curiosity and decides to disguise herself by draping a cougar skin over her back and crouching behind some trees so that she may hear the tribal elder’s words. His eyes meet hers and he becomes enraged. He draws on the power of the forest and curses her to wear the cougar skin forever.

This work was included in the “Local Legends” group art exhibition August 2022 in Asheville, NC.