“The Vanishing Race” gold tone photograph by Edward S. Curtis; (1904). Signed lower right “Curtis/LA.” Period frame.
This was Curtis’s signiure piece and was the visual metaphor for the core conceptual underpinning of Curtis’ entire thirty-year project i.e., that Native Americans, as a culture, at least, were vanishing. It became Curtis’ over-arching goal to create a record of them and their world before they disappeared forever. Curtis searched for an image to illustrate this idea for nearly four years before creating The Vanishing Race. A century ago, it was by far and away Curtis’ most popular single image. Today it still remains a highly sought after classic.
PERIOD: Early 20th Century
ORIGIN: California, United States
SIZE: 11″ x 14″; Frame 14 1/2″ x 18″