Kaskaskia Chief, His Mother, and Son 1861 - 1869

This painting of a Kaskaskia Chief, his mother, and son, was made by George Catlin using oil on canvas. Catlin spent much of the 1830s traveling the American West and documenting the lives of Native American tribes. While his intentions may have been well-meaning, his work has to be seen in the context of colonial expansion. The very act of painting these figures flattens them into objects for the viewer's consumption. The chief's Western-style clothing and his son’s feather headdress are signifiers of cultural exchange and tension, between Native American traditions and the encroaching Western culture. The artist’s decision to portray the sitters in this way speaks to an effort of assimilation, and the displacement of indigenous people and their lifeways. By considering the history and context of the painting, we can better understand the power dynamics inherent in its creation and interpretation.