Native Americans in American Painting

There's such a small number of students in my American art history course that our instructor ended up ditching her initial syllabus, opting instead to cover whatever appealed to her in the moment. As a consequence of this new approach we ended up engaging in a nearly three week  long discussion of the portrayal of Native Americans in American art. It might be easy to dismiss these images of Indians as racist stereotypes, but every stereotype serves a function. An argument can certainly be made that the depictions of Native Americans in 18^th and 19^th century art not only aided in the dehumanization of Indians, but also made it easier for American settlers to push the indigenous people off of their land and into reservations.  

The term “manifest destiny” was coined in 1845, but it described an idea that had already been present in American culture for quite some time. The belief that the nation’s expansion from coast to coast was a necessary part of the progress of civilization fueled western settlement and consequently Native American removal. The image of the Native American in art changed to reflect and in some ways justify this ideology of "manifest destiny". Over the course of the 18^th and 19^th centuries the image of Native American transformed from one of nobility to one of vicious savagery and the inevitably of extinction.  Indigenous people were distilled to stereotypes; tribe distinctions were ignored, Native Americans became a symbol for the past and the cliché of the Indian as “one with nature” was born.My art history instructor argues that image of Native American  can therefore be generally classified into one of three categories: the noble savage, the barbarian, and the doomed Indian. 

France Bringing the Faith to the Indians of New France

France Bringing the Faith to the Indians of New France by Claude Francois is an early example of the noble Indian archetype in painting. The 1675 French work commemorates France’s arrival to the Canadian provinces. It depicts a native receiving a piece of Catholic art, symbolizing Christian faith, from a personification of France. In the background the wild landscape shifts as the Indian’s huts sprout crosses at the top. Despite the lighter skin tone, it is immediately apparent that the figure on the left is indigenous judging from his beads, braids and coral necklace earrings. These markings combined with the landscape mark the figure as savage. However, France Bringing the Faith to the Indians of New France is undeniably an image of the noble savage. The Native American appears kneeling, semi nude, but draped in fabric covered with the fleur de lis (the symbol of French royalty). The portrayal of Native American as noble savage continued into the late 18^th century. Benjamin West’s Death of General Wolfe includes a crouching Indian figure among the crowd of onlookers. His posture is contemplative reminiscent of Michelangelo in Raphael’s The School of Athens. Out of all of the figures in the painting, the Indian is portrayed as the wisest.

Death of General Wolfe

            As America moved into the 19^th century the ideas of manifest destiny and romanticism began to impact images of Native Americans in art.  Romanticism was a genre of painting that stressed intense emotion and tended to focus on exotic and outsider culture. The style was often concerned with the “other”, or peoples outside of White American culture, therefore African American’s and Native American’s were often prominent in Romantic paintings.  The Death of Jane McCrea by John Vanderlyn is an example of Native American as barbarian. The 1804 image is based on a true story where American settlers were attacked by Indian mercenaries allied with the British. Vanderlyn’s work stresses impending death as two Indians prepare to kill and scalp Jane McCrae. The Natives are depicted as fierce and muscular as the American cowers under them. Her pure white skin stands in stark contrast to their red skin. 

The Death of Jane McCrea

Forty years later, and just one year after the term manifest destiny was coined, Vanderlyn painted The Landing of Columbus. The artwork is largely concerned with Columbus’ arrival in America while the indigenous people are confined to the background. The Native Americans are barbarian: dehumanized as they cower in the jungle, naked, becoming part of the landscape.

The Landing of Columbus.

 Thirty years later the lithograph Daniel Boone Protects his Family perfectly encapsulated the idea of manifest destiny. The print shows the pioneer fighting with a native. The Indian is depicted as a savage who is easily dominated. The images of Indian as barbarian paint the people as a threat that need to be driven from the West if American culture is to survive.

Daniel Boone Protects his Family

            As westward expansion continued, the Native American began to be portrayed as a remnant of the past and the archetype of the doomed Indian was born. 1826’s Falls of the Kaaterskill by Thomas Cole is an autumnal waterfall landscape.  A generic Native American sits atop the waterfall, alone, as nature crumbles around him. Cole’s painting is a nostalgic image. The lone Indian is fragile, a weak victim. 

Falls of the Kaaterskill

Similarly, The Dying Tecumseh by Ferdinand Pettrich blends the noble Indian with the doomed concept. The mid-nineteenth century sculpture portrays a known Indian chief in the classical Greek motif of the dying warrior. Resembling a Greek temple frieze, Tecumseh is given the traditional musculature of a hero and has peacefulness about him in death. 

The Dying Tecumseh

Related to this idea of the doomed Indian is Thomas Cole’s 1836 series of paintings The Course of Empire. His series of five works depicts the rise and fall of western civilization. The very first piece in the series, titled The Savage State, represents the primitive beginnings of humanity with teepees. The Native American becomes a symbol of the wild past. These works of art stress the extinction of the Indian as inevitable. The Indians are an element of the past that needs to fade away in order for the progress of civilization to continue.

The Savage State