Art of the American West- Emmigrants Crossing the Plains

"Emigrants Crossing the Plains" (1869) Albert Bierstadt

For this post I gave chosen a painting by Albert Bierstadt called "Emigrants Crossing the Plains" done in 1869. This painting stood out to me, initially because of the colours, and how these bright colours represented the early American notion of the settlement of the west in a glorious way, and the warmth created by the colours and the sunset makes the discovery and settlement of the west seem more attractive to Eastern 19th-century viewers. The style of this painting seems to negate the interpretation of the American West as being dangerous and scary, which was prevalent in many paintings by various artists at a similar time. Instead, Bierstadt presents the West in a way that entices a sense of calm, and actually makes the West appear very welcoming.

However, though this perception still stands, upon closer inspection, I noticed that there is an Indian camp in the background of the painting. There could be many different reasons Bierstadt chose to portray Indians in this way, but to me, the faintness of the tipis represents the idea of the 'Vanishing Indian'. I think that the title of the piece is quite significant-'Emigrants Crossing the Plains'. This is because it is such a simple and to the point title, which entirely ignores the presence of the Indians on the plains, whilst including them in the painting in a way that is just about noticeable. To me, the tipis are included in a way that presents them as just another obstacle for the settlers. Other than the woods and cliffs, the painting does not draw much attention to much else in the background. I found it interesting that Bierstadt chose to include a buffalo skull and bones in the painting. This is because, despite the sense of admiration of the West that is enticed by the style of the painting, it seems that the skull and bones were, perhaps, included as a small reminder of the trail of destruction and death the Western pioneers and settlers left behind, animals, trees and Indians. 

The painting itself is 78.8cm x 124.5cm, which is quite large, and Bierstadt most likely did this as a way of emphasising the scale and enormity of the landscape in which it was painted. Many of the landscape the settlers travelled through were completely unfamiliar. For example, it was unlikely that many of the settlers would have ever encountered such scenery, making it all the more attractive to those who continued living in the east. 

In this painting, Bierstadt has managed to include everything that most people today typify as being the American West, pioneers, wagons, Indians, not so much wildlife as farmed animals (which went on to create the western stereotype of ranches), and open expanses of land. Overall, I think this piece is a great example of American Western art, from the perspective of someone who experienced the hardship of the journey westward. Through this, Bierstadt was able to encapsulate the essence and a vision of the American West, that remains iconic to this day.