Born near Pendleton (b. 1951), Lavadour resides on the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation and is co-founder of the Crow's Shadow Institute of the Arts, a non-profit art facility for Native artists. Lavadour's paintings celebrate the Blue Mountains and the surrounding areas of his homeland. His work reflects an emotional relationship with and intense reverence for the land. His art primarily informed by his Native culture, Asian art, Abstract Expressionism, and jazz music. Lavadour is featured in numerous public and private collections such as the Boise Art Museum, The Federal Reserve Bank in San Francisco, Hallie Ford Museum of Art, The Heard Museum, The Hood Museum, Microsoft Corporation, Portland Art Museum, Seattle Art Museum, Seattle Seahawks Stadium, Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian, Tacoma Art Museum, Washington State Arts Commission, U.S. Department of Interior, Indian Arts and Crafts Board, and U.S. Embassy of Islamabad, Pakistan among others.