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Water Baskets—Wishham

Edward S. Curtis; John Andrew & Son, Boston

Artwork Details

Water Baskets—Wishham
1909
Edward S. Curtis; John Andrew & Son, Boston
photogravure on paper
12 in x 9 3/16 in (30.48 cm x 23.34 cm)
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Douglas M. Kenyon
1987/1.206

Description

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.

Usage Rights:

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