Edward Sheriff (his mother's maiden name) Curtis was, in all probability, a descendant of the large Curtis family branch of early Connecticut. I descend from Dinah Curtis who married Eleazer Fairchild (1724-1811). My Fairchild family line comes from my maternal grandfather's maternal grandmother, Vena Iola Fairchild (died 1940 in Oklahoma).
Of my many quests, this new one of discovering a possible link to this fascinating historical figure, is what makes history and genealogy very innertwinned.
Edward Sheriff Curtis was a renowned photographer of Native Americans. His photographs were taken at a time when Native American ways of life where on the verge of vanishing. It is controversial as to whether Curtis helped or helped progress vanish the Amer Indian way of life. Personally, I feel that history is vastly taken out of context and Mr. Curtis had very good intentions devoting his life to documenting the destruction of a race. His methods of changing backgrounds to authenticate a lost heritage where, in my view, well meaning at the time. The proof is in the viewing, so visit websites that show his history and his photos to judge for yourself and learn about a forgotten man in our history.
2 comments:
ES Curtis's works are represented well in 'The Indian Picture Opera'(Amazon,dvd). It's a re-creation of his 1911 lecture and slide show.
His work reverberates on through history because he knew how to capture character and soul on camera.
Curtis has turned into a subject of controversy because of the tug of war between documentary and art. Many people try to hold him accountable for 50 years before, and 100 years after his images were taken.
The images speak for themselves.
Lord! I just figured out how to find my comments! Thanks, anonymous, whoever you are for the updated info. I agree and wished his work was more known and exhibited.
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