Piegan Blackfeet Woman

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Artist

Karl Bodmer

Birth and death dates

1809 - 1893

Artist Nationality

Swiss

Title

Piegan Blackfoot Woman

Date

August 24, 1833

Dimensions

17 × 12 1/16 in. (43.2 × 30.6 cm)

Medium

Watercolor and graphite on paper

Institution

Joslyn Art Museum

Credit Line

Gift of the Enron Art Foundation

Accession Number

1986.49.292

Rights (i.e. copyright information)

Joslyn Art Museum

Photographer credit

Photograph © Bruce M. White, 2019

Commentary

An inscription on this watercolor identifies the subject as a young Piegan woman, presumably the one known to have been painted by Bodmer on August 24 whom Maximilian described as being very pretty, with beautiful eyes. She required her husband's permission for the portrait, and he was given red paint and blue beads in exchange for the favor. Although his young wife appears calm and quiet in this picture, apparently she was not feeling well and proved a restless subject. The Plains fondness for blue and white beads is evident in this woman's elegant attire. Her dress is decorated with bands of beadwork as well as clusters of beaded fringe and appliqued bits of black and red cloth. She also seems to be wearing a beaded sash instead of an everyday rawhide belt, plus beaded bracelets and moccasins. A plain skin robe falls from her left shoulder across her back to the ground at her right.

References in Journal

August 24, 1833

Labels:

genre, portrait

Approximate Depicted Location:

Fort McKenzie, Montana