Artwork
Historians of the Tribe
Historians of the Tribe is an oil painting by the American Impressionist artist Frederic Remington. It dates from 1894 and is held in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago.
About this work
For another look at how artists showed Native Americans in this era, check out the technique called *chiaroscuro*.
You see five Native men inside a dim tent, bent over books or scrolls, while an elder watches from the shadows.
Remington painted this around 1890, right after the Wounded Knee massacre ended decades of conflict. The men aren’t fighting—they’re recording their history, but their slumped shoulders suggest defeat. The scene feels like a quiet goodbye to a way of life.
For another look at how artists showed Native Americans in this era, check out the technique called *chiaroscuro*.
Overview
Historians of the Tribe is an oil on canvas painting created by Frederic Remington around 1890.
Subject & Meaning
The painting depicts five Native American men in a dimly lit interior, recording and rereading their history, watched over by a tribal elder. Their slumped postures convey a sense of defeat and nostalgia, capturing a moment of transition in the history of Native Americans.
Technique & Style
Remington employed chiaroscuro, a technique using strong contrasts between light and dark, to create a somber atmosphere. The dimly lit interior emphasizes the men's introspective activity, drawing attention to their historical records.
Context
Painted around 1890, the work coincides with the end of the US army's conflict with the Plains Indians, marked by the Wounded Knee massacre. The painting reflects on the decline of Native American ways of life.
Artist & collection
Artist
Frederic Sackrider Remington was an American painter, illustrator, sculptor, and writer who specialized in the genre of Western American Art.
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