Grand Canon, Colorado River, Near Paria Creek, Looking West 1872

This albumen print of the Grand Canyon was captured by William Bell, who was part of the Wheeler Expedition in the early 1870s, a time when the American West was still largely unknown to those living in the East. Bell’s photograph, with its panoramic vista, invites viewers to imagine themselves as pioneers, discovering the sublime and untamed landscape. Yet, the narrative of discovery obscures the complex history of the land and its original inhabitants, the Indigenous peoples who were displaced and dispossessed during Westward Expansion. What does it mean to make an image of a landscape that is both breathtakingly beautiful, yet also fraught with the violence of settler colonialism? How might the visual representation of the American West perpetuate ideas of manifest destiny and erase the presence and history of Native communities? Bell’s photograph is a reminder of the power of images to shape our understanding of history and identity. It asks us to consider the multiple perspectives and experiences that are embedded in the land.