Some interesting history on the photographer:
Gertrude Käsebier
Käsebier was given the task of portraying the Lakota Sioux and the accompanying show “Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show.” This became personal project which would later bring her fame. What is interesting about her photographs, in contrast to other photographers who photographed the Indians, is that it is readily visible that the people were at ease, without poses (as evidenced by this photo). By the end of the project she had become friends with many of the people whom she had photographed.
They were 'tame Indians' who had given up the lance for the dole, selling their culture. I'm not saying that the Wild West Show was a bad thing. It was a caricature of what had passed beyond the veil.
ReplyDelete