After serving in the Vietnam War, Rick Bartow returned to coastal Oregon and life as a blues musician and artist. Following his first solo exhibition in Portland in 1985, Bartow turned his focus to assemblage and sculptures, delicately rendered drawings and etchings, and bold paintings that often draw from Native American stories. Late in his life, he became involved in the World Renewal ceremonies of his ancestral community, the Wiyot people of Eureka, California.

Bartow often drew inspiration from Native American stories, most notably creation stories about shape-shifting animals meant to remind us that every living thing is deeply connected. This semi-abstract painting depicts a long-legged, humanoid bird and the interconnected forms of a coyote and human figure. These forms remind us that Native American animal stories often include insights about human behavior, told through the exploits of animals, and that these stories sometimes feature dramatic visions of shape-shifting transformation.