Indian Woman

Artist Paul Kane (Canadian, 1810 - 1871)

Datec. 1848

Mediumoil on canvas

Dimensions25 x 20 inches (63.5 x 50.8 cm)
Frame: 30 1/8 × 25 1/8 × 2 1/4 inches (76.5 × 63.8 × 5.7 cm)

Credit LineBequest of H.J. Lutcher Stark, 1965

Object number31.78.221

ClassificationsPaintings

Label TextWho is the woman in this painting and why did Kane paint her? The artist did not identify her. The clue to the painting’s meaning may be in the container she holds. It is similar to a birchbark box that Kane depicted in other works of art. Indian people made these boxes to sell to non-natives. Perhaps Kane intended to depict an Indian woman in the act of displaying her handmade item to a potential buyer. Therefore, the painting is not intended to be a portrait of an individual person, but rather a scene about trade between different groups of people. (use a photo of detail of the birchbark box from 31.78.230 on the label.) Detail of Paul Kane, Caw-kee-ka-keesh-e-ko or “The Constant Sky”

ProvenanceArtist; by descent to his grandson, Paul Kane III [1889-1958], Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada; purchased September 17, 1957 through (Edward Eberstadt & Sons, New York, New York) by H.J. Lutcher Stark [1887-1965]; bequeathed September 2, 1965 to the Nelda C. and H.J. Lutcher Stark Foundation; accessioned to the Stark Museum of Art

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