Confluence of the Fox River and the Wabash in Indiana 1832

Karl Bodmer created this watercolor and pencil drawing of the Confluence of the Fox River and the Wabash in Indiana during his travels in the American frontier. Bodmer was employed to document the landscape and the lives of Native Americans in the 1830s. In this artwork, the confluence is depicted with a serene and romantic sensibility, which veils the complex history of westward expansion and its impact on indigenous peoples. What do you feel as you look at this landscape? Is it peace, melancholy, or something else? This imagery often served to create an idyllic and depopulated vision of the American landscape, erasing the presence and rights of Native American tribes who had a deep connection to the land. Bodmer's images contributed to a narrative that justified territorial expansion. It is a reminder of how art can be both beautiful and complicit in broader societal narratives.