Mah-kée-mee-teuv, Grizzly Bear, Chief of the Tribe

George Catlin, Mah-kée-mee-teuv, Grizzly Bear, Chief of the Tribe, 1831, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr., 1985.66.218
Copied George Catlin, Mah-kée-mee-teuv, Grizzly Bear, Chief of the Tribe, 1831, oil on canvas, 21 1⁄8 x 16 1⁄8 in. (53.8 x 40.9 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr., 1985.66.218
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Artwork Details

Title
Mah-kée-mee-teuv, Grizzly Bear, Chief of the Tribe
Artist
Date
1831
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
21 1⁄8 x 16 1⁄8 in. (53.8 x 40.9 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr.
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas
Classifications
Subjects
  • Portrait male — Grizzly Bear
  • Indian — Menominee
Object Number
1985.66.218
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1985.66.218

Artwork Description

George Catlin described Grizzly Bear as a dignified chief of the Menominee tribe who “commanded great respect for his eloquence, and . . . deportment.” He painted the chief with “a handsome pipe in his hand, and wampum on his neck,” probably in Washington, D.C., in 1831, when Grizzly Bear and fourteen members of his tribe visited the capital to negotiate the sale of a portion of their tribal lands. This portrait is painted with a flourish and fullness of expression that distinguishes it among the Menominee group. (Truettner, The Natural Man Observed , 1979)