Unraveling Edward S. Curtis's The North American Indian

In the years 1900-1930, American photographer Edward S. Curtis realized his life’s work, the monumental twenty-volume book series The North American Indian (1907-1930). Over the years, this work has been both praised and criticized. In this comprehensive and innovative study, Herman Cohen Stuart corrects a number of persistent misconceptions about the way Curtis, for many the most image-defining and influential photographer of American Indians, has represented the indigenous peoples of North America. The author argues that Curtis was keenly aware of the major changes Native Americans faced in the early 20th century. As is demonstrated by a thorough – both quantitative and qualitative – analysis of both Curtis’s texts and photographic artwork, Curtis was deeply conscious of the fact that by, and even before, the turn of the century, Western influences had already made large inroads into Native American life. This book provides a reappraisal of Curtis's position during this complicated and trying period for Native Americans.