Buffalo Heart. It beats inside all of us. Through our rusty, salty roots. Digging neighbors out of snowdrifts, supporting community meat raffles, our four falls in the '90s, 13 seconds, and beyond. Number 17 isn't just a man, he is a symbol for the underdog spirit that lives inside anyone born in our city. This artwork demanded to be made, of someone I admire as much as the city that made me. Join this first access list to receive size, pricing and shipping details before public release. There is no payment or obligation at this stage- it's a way to help me plan numbers. Thanks for sharing my deep love for the city of good neighbors and our hometown team.
Buffalo Heart
This original oil painting took over 12 months to create. I started the piece shortly before the NFL named Josh Allen MVP for the 2024 season. The accolade was a bit of a salve after losing the championship game yet again, to the Chiefs.
I’ll never forget the joy and pride I felt when my husband called me with the news that Josh won. I was driving to pick the kids up from school, and I probably blew out his eardrum when I YASSSSed!!!!!! into the speaker. It felt like affirmation for Bills fans everywhere: we had the best quarterback in the NFL and possibly the best football player to ever play the game. Ask anyone who knows.
The Bills Mafia, our fanbase, garnered plenty of attention in recent years for its extreme generosity and its ability to clear out the folding-table section of Home Depot. They are loyal, lovable maniacs who dive-bomb tables and bathe in condiments. But the pride and roots of this fanbase run much deeper than that.
Bills fans are the blood and guts of their Rust Belt city. They are proud neighbors with salt-of-the-earth, blue-collar roots. They always show up. Even when the team loses four Super Bowls in a row. Even through a 17-year playoff drought. They just keep showing up.
As an artist, I’ve found myself curiously exploring the inspiration Buffalo still offers me, especially my connection to my hometown and our hero, Josh Allen (he's an exceptional role model and wonderful human aside from being a superfreak football player). I live over ten thousand miles from Buffalo today, and I always get homesick during football season. As I enter my mid-40s, exploring my roots from a distance has become therapeutic and deeply sentimental.
Painting Josh was a terrifying idea. It came to me on the yoga mat (a portal to my very best ideas). I love attempting expressive portraits, but I’ve never tried to paint anyone famous. It feels vulnerable and kind of makes me want to hide.
But I had to try.
So I give you a spiritual version of Josh, with Third-Eye wisdom, buffalo horns, gladiolas, flowers historically associated with Roman gladiators, balanced with some daisies for yin, and Native American arrowheads to honor the land he plays upon.
Now I want to share this piece with friends, family, and fellow fans. It’s a celebration of love and dedication on many levels, especially football, if you’re into that sort of thing.
We’ve never won a Super Bowl. But the lessons learned as a team, a town, and a fanbase have forever humbled us. Just glance at our history, and you'll find the ultimate underdogs with hearts that refuse to quit.
Show me anyone more loyal than a Bills fan.
Go Bills!
For the Love of Buffalo,
Dawn
The title: Buffalo Heart
Native Americans had many different spiritual meanings for the Buffalo, but each tribe regarded it as a relative and sacred provider (the Smithsonian). When I came up with the title of this painting, I thought deeply about our sacred Buffalo, the native land we live and play on, and the more I read, the more I realized that having a ‘Buffalo heart’ represents the strength and generosity rooted in home, community, and survival. And that's what this artwork, and my hometown team, mean to me.
This is an independent fan artwork and is not affiliated with Josh Allen, the NFL or the Buffalo Bills.
