In his long and storied career, Frank McCarthy earned renown for many things—his attention to detail, his insistence on historical accuracy, his first-rate storytelling ability—but none were more celebrated than his eye for design. “The Dean of Western Action,” as he came to be known, brought from his early days as a commercial illustrator an understanding of visual design that makes his action-packed paintings the finest of their type. In The Taunt, a band of Plains warriors races across the prairie with their opponents in hot pursuit. The frenetic action of the story is made infinitely more exciting by McCarthy’s compelling design, which leads the viewer’s eye through the painting like a hawk tracking a hare. Any serious collector of Western art cannot consider their collection complete if it does not contain a McCarthy, who is truly an original American master!