Accession Number
1987/1.206

Title
Water Baskets—Wishham

Artist(s)
Edward S. Curtis

Artist Nationality
American (North American)

Object Creation Date
1909

Medium & Support
photogravure on paper

Dimensions
12 in x 9 3/16 in (30.48 cm x 23.34 cm)

Credit Line
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Douglas M. Kenyon

Subject matter
This image of a woman from the Wishham tribe—now known as Wishram—is from The North American Indian (1907-1930), a twenty-volume series created by Edward Curtis in order to document the lives of Native Americans in diverse regions of the Western United States. This limited edition volume was financially supported by J.P. Morgan, and promoted by Theodore Roosevelt. The resulting works have been criticized and celebrated for their portrayal of Native American life. Curtis often included anachronous props and clothing and presented rituals that had not been performed in years in order to support an idealized and romantic reading of a “vanishing race.”

Physical Description
A woman kneeling in a rocky landscape. She is near a stream with a vessel for water in her hands. She wears her hair in long braids and a cloth on her forehead.

Primary Object Classification
Photograph

Collection Area
Photography

Rights
If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit http://umma.umich.edu/request-image for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.

Keywords
Native American
Wishram
basket
braids (hairstyle)
full-length
modern and contemporary art
portraits
rocks (landforms)
seated
sitting
springs (bodies of water)
storage vessels
water