Gordon C. Sage

Gordon C. Sage

VANCOUVER, Wash. | My father was born Oct. 21, 1921 and raised on a small ranch near the foot of Mount Rushmore in the Black Hills of South Dakota. This picturesque resort area, endowed him with a lifelong love of wild life, nature and scenic beauty. He spent his youth hunting and fishing along the pristine streams and ponderosa pine covered hills. It was here that he acquired and intimate knowledge of nature. At a very young age it became evident that he was born with the natural ability to take that knowledge and turn it into artistic master pieces.

September 1939, his senior year, Hitler's troops invaded Poland. He decided to join the National Guard to help guard his country. Graduating from Rapid City high school in 1940, he made another decision... He felt it was his duty to his country, he switched to the U.S. Marine Corps. Hitchhiking to Minneapolis, MN. to the Recruiting Center. He was soon sent to Boot Camp at Camp Pendleton near San Diego, CA. Assigned to a Sea Going Marine unit. At age 20 he was assigned to Rear Admiral Walter Stratton Anderson on the USS Maryland, as his orderly. Admiral Anderson was the commander of the battleships fleet in the Pacific theater. On Sunday, Dec. 7, 1941 Gordon was shining his shoes getting ready to spend his day off ashore. At about 7:55 the Japanese war planes struck, and Gordon started hearing explosions. He thought the Army was just practicing with its big guns. A friend came to his door and said, "this is it"... Pearl Harbor was being bombed. Going to the door he saw the Oklahoma tilting over. Sailors on the Maryland were throwing ropes to the men in the oil-filled water. Gordon was dumb with disbelief after they had been told that you couldn't sink a battleship. The bay was on fire and the flames were right up against the ship. He jumped in a line and started passing ammunition to an anti-aircraft gun until the Admiral came aboard, and Gordon took up his duties as orderly.

The Maryland was struck with three blows but spared heavy damage. The ship crippled out of the harbor and went the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Bremerton, WA for repairs. In Seattle he met the love of his life, Patricia Decker and married.

He returned to active duty and participated in the landing of Tarawa and then reassigned to the 4th Marine division and was on the landing of Iwo Jima.

After WWII, Gordon went to art school for a while then reenlisted in the Army-Aircorps. He chose the Air Force when the the branches separated. Although, WWII interrupted Gordon's early interest in art, it was not abandoned. He kept close ties with art by serving as an illustrator for 15 years in the military, and was painting in his spare time. Gordon put in another 20 years in teaching high school art.

He has spent his life exploring the potential of oil paint with all it richness and variety of texture. Gordon Sage was a versatile and prolific artist, the greater part of his output consists of Native American themes, encompassing Native myths, customs and dress. The rest of his work is comprised of landscapes, wildlife, portraits, allegory and literary themes. Most of his work created in the last 20 years has been painted with a Palette knife.

His formal Art training began at Colorado Springs Fine Art Center where he studied under Boardman Robinson. Later Gordon graduated from Arizona State University and received his master's degree from Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon.

Mr. Sage has shown and sold to collectors in Japan, France, South Dakota, Arizona, California, Portland Oregon, and Seattle, Vancouver, Washington.

Gordon finally set his memories of Pearl Harbor down on canvas. The painting is on permanent display in the WWII museum in New Orleans.

He is survived by his daughter, Donna G Sage, son-in-law, Ray B. Bailey, three grandsons, three great-granddaughters, two great-grandsons, three great-great-grandsons, one great-great-granddaughter, great-nephews, Harlan Bush, Steve Castor, Rick Castor and great-niece, Kathy Boyd.

Preceding him in death were his wife, Patricia Sage and granddaughter, Carmel.