Iron Cloud's work highlights his heritage as a member of the Hunkpapa Sioux Tribe... born and raised on the Standing Rock Reservation in South Dakota.

At age five, while living with his grandmother, he created his first "masterpiece". Unfortunately, the canvas was her kitchen door and a bucket of water and sponge quickly replaced his crayons.

In the fourth grade, while attending St. Joseph's Indian School at Chamberlain, South Dakota, he won his first art contest. The students were asked to draw posters showing what they wanted to be when they grew up and to write paragraphs explaining why they chose that position. Iron Cloud drew an infantryman with binoculars standing in the back of a truck. "to protect my country" were the simple words he used to explain his chosen profession.

Upon graduating from high school in 1968, he entered the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Two years later he received his postgraduate degree and went on to attend the American Academy of Art in Chicago.

In 1971, he enlisted in the Air Force and after serving twenty years, retired in June 1991. Since his retirement, Iron Cloud has refocused himself on his first love... painting. As an established artist, he has won many awards and recognition for his talent. His ability to paint military-subjects and Native American art has made Iron Cloud one of the most versatile Native American artists today.