Inspired by Western and Indian life, Charles Craig did paintings characterized by detailed accuracy, gained from several years spent living with various tribes and carefully recording the details of their culture. A fifty-year resident of Colorado Springs, he was the state's first academically trained resident artist, and his paintings reflected many aspects of his region including the Ute Indians. Friends called him "Pink Face Charlie" because his disposition and his paintings were invariably cheerful and sunny.

Charles Craig was born in 1846 on a farm in Morgan County, Ohio. He began painting as a boy, creating his palette from natural materials and canvases made from oil and flour treated cotton cloths....