Horseracing on a Course Behind the Mandan Village

George Catlin, Horseracing on a Course Behind the Mandan Village, 1832-1833, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr., 1985.66.432
George Catlin, Horseracing on a Course Behind the Mandan Village, 1832-1833, oil on canvas, 19 5⁄8 x 27 1⁄2 in. (49.7 x 70.0 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr., 1985.66.432
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Artwork Details

Title
Horseracing on a Course Behind the Mandan Village
Artist
Date
1832-1833
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
19 5⁄8 x 27 1⁄2 in. (49.7 x 70.0 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr.
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas
Classifications
Subjects
  • Architecture Exterior — domestic — teepee
  • Indian — Mandan
  • Animal — horse
  • Recreation — sport and play — equestrian
  • Western
  • Figure group
Object Number
1985.66.432
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1985.66.432

Artwork Description

“Horse-racing here, as in all more enlightened communities, is one of the most exciting amusements, and one of the most extravagant modes of gambling . . . I have been this day a spectator . . . on a course which they have, just back of their village; and although I never had the least taste for this cruel amusement in my own country, yet, I must say, I have been not a little amused and pleased with the thrilling effect which these exciting scenes have produced amongst so wild and picturesque a group . . . I have made a sketch of the ground and the group, as near as I could; shewing the manner of ‘starting’ and ‘coming out,’ which vary a little from the customs of the knowing world; but in other respects, I believe, a horse-race is the same all the world over.” George Catlin made this sketch at a Mandan village in 1832. (Catlin, Letters and Notes, vol. 1, no. 20, 1841; reprint 1973)

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William H. Johnson, Chain Gang, ca. 1939, oil on plywood, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation, 1967.59.675
Chain Gang
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William H. Johnson, Going to Church, ca. 1940-1941, oil on burlap, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation, 1967.59.1003
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Young Pastry Cook
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Dateca. 1928-1930
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