Cañon of Kanab Wash, Colorado River, Looking South 1872

William Bell made this albumen silver print, titled "Cañon of Kanab Wash, Colorado River, Looking South," at some point in the 19th century. Bell's work exists within the historical context of Western expansion and the U.S. government's efforts to map and document the American West. These images often served to promote the idea of manifest destiny, framing the landscape as open and available for settlement, while obscuring the presence and rights of Native American populations. Consider how Bell's position as a white man shaped the narrative of his photographs. What perspectives might be missing? How might the experience of the Indigenous people who inhabited these lands differ from the story told by this image? This photograph invites us to reflect on the complex relationship between landscape, identity, and power. It challenges us to consider whose stories are told and whose are left out when we look at images of the American West.