Field of Bluebonnets under Cloudy Sky 

Robert Julian Onderdonk painted this idyllic landscape of bluebonnets, the state flower of Texas, sometime before his death in 1922. Onderdonk’s paintings were marketed as emblems of Texas identity, connecting the state’s natural beauty to its sense of place and community. But, who was this community? Onderdonk’s images rarely included the people who worked the land, obscuring a history of conflict between white settlers and indigenous populations, and the exploitation of Mexican labor. Texas was a place where the myth of the frontier was strongly promoted, one that centered on a rugged individualism in the landscape, obscuring realities of class and race. As art historians, we look to paintings like these for clues to the social and cultural values of their time. Careful research into the artist's life, the artwork's reception, and the historical context can help us understand the complex relationship between art, identity, and power.