This collection illustrates the movement of settlers into Western regions of the United States and the depiction and interpretation of this movement by visual artists. By 1850, although many U.S. Americans understood the shape of the nation to be fixed, indigenous people continued to contest these claims. At the same time, technological developments made photography widely available to European Americans. This historical conjuncture meant that the settlers and the U.S. government's expropriation of native land was aided by the circulation of the first photographic images of the West.
This collections invites a critical look at the representation and effect of Manifest Destiny, and ideology that explained European American violence and colonialism as the pre-determined unfolding of what was mean to be . This body of work raises important and challenging questions about racial
stereotyping, the seizure of land from native populations, and the preservation and
destruction of natural resources. What this portfolio can also show is the shifting and changing images
of the American West over time, for example: from the focus on “cowboys and
Indians” of Huffman and Kenyon to the sublime natural expanses of Ansel Adams.
Representations and Misrepresentations of Indigenous America
John Hillers Zuni Watching albumen print on paper 10 in. x 8 in. ( 25.4 cm x 20.3 cm ) Museum Purchase made possible by the Friends of the Museum of Art
Imogen Cunningham Northwest Native gelatin silver print on paper 16 3/8 in x 13 1/4 in (41.6 cm x 33.7 cm);22 1/4 in x 18 3/16 in (56.52 cm x 46.2 cm);13 11/16 in x 10 11/16 in (34.7 cm x 27.1 cm) Gift of the Marvin Felheim Collection
Laton Alton Huffman Jennie Wallace, Crow Girl toned gelatin silver print on paper 7 ½ in x 5 ½ in (19.05 cm x 13.97 cm);13 in x 11 in (33.02 cm x 27.94 cm);7 11/16 in x 5 ½ in (19.53 cm x 13.97 cm) Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Douglas M. Kenyon
Edward S. Curtis Wishham Bowl photogravure on paper 9 3/16 in x 12 in (23.34 cm x 30.48 cm);14 3/4 in x 19 3/4 in (37.47 cm x 50.17 cm) Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Douglas M. Kenyon
Edward S. Curtis A Corner of Taos and a Kiva Entrance photogravure on paper 6 5/8 in x 8 1/4 in (16.83 cm x 20.96 cm) Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Douglas M. Kenyon
Edward S. Curtis Caches at Celilo photogravure on paper 9 3/16 in x 12 in (23.34 cm x 30.48 cm);14 3/4 in x 19 3/4 in (37.47 cm x 50.17 cm) Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Douglas M. Kenyon
Edward S. Curtis Fort Lapwai photogravure on paper 9 3/16 in x 12 in (23.34 cm x 30.48 cm);14 3/8 in x 19 3/8 in (36.51 cm x 49.21 cm) Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Douglas M. Kenyon
Victor Higgins Oka and Walmacho oil on canvas 27 1/16 in x 30 1/16 in (68.74 cm x 76.36 cm);38 in x 41 in x 1 1/2 in (96.52 cm x 104.14 cm x 3.81 cm) Gift of Albert M. Todd