Buffalo Chase with Bows and Lances

George Catlin, Buffalo Chase with Bows and Lances, 1832-1833, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr., 1985.66.410
George Catlin, Buffalo Chase with Bows and Lances, 1832-1833, oil on canvas, 2429 in. (60.973.7 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr., 1985.66.410
Free to use

Artwork Details

Title
Buffalo Chase with Bows and Lances
Date
1832-1833
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
2429 in. (60.973.7 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr.
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas
Classifications
Subjects
  • Indian
  • Occupation — hunter
  • Animal — buffalo
  • Figure group — male
  • Animal — horse
Object Number
1985.66.410

Artwork Description

Of Buffalo Chase, George Catlin wrote: “I have represented a party of Indians in chase of a herd, some of whom are pursuing with lance and others with bows and arrows. The group in the foreground shews the attitude at the instant after the arrow has been thrown and driven to the heart; the Indian at full speed, and the laso dragging behind his horse's heels . . . In running the buffaloes, or in time of war, the laso drags on the ground at the horse's feet, and sometimes several rods behind, so that if a man is dismounted, which is often the case, by the tripping or stumbling of the horse, he has the power of grasping to the laso, and by stubbornly holding on to it, of stopping and securing his horse.” George Catlin sketched this scene on the Upper Missouri in 1832. (Catlin, Letters and Notes, vol. 1, no. 31, 1841; reprint 1973)

Works by this artist (14 items)

Nellie Mae Rowe, At the Art Gallery, 1979, crayon and felt tip on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment and the American Women's History Initiative Acquisitions Pool, administered by the Smithsonian American Women's History Initiative, 2021.29.10
At the Art Gallery
Date1979
crayon and felt tip on paper
Not on view
Nellie Mae Rowe, Untitled (Four-Leaf Clover and Little Zebra), 1980, marker on silver gelatin print, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment and the American Women's History Initiative Acquisitions Pool, administered by the Smithsonian American Women's History Initiative, 2021.29.6
Untitled (Four-Leaf Clover and Little Zebra)
Date1980
marker on silver gelatin print
Not on view
Nellie Mae Rowe, Church Lady in Pants Suit, 1980, crayon and pencil on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment and the American Women's History Initiative Acquisitions Pool, administered by the Smithsonian American Women's History Initiative, 2021.29.9
Church Lady in Pants Suit
Date1980
crayon and pencil on paper
Not on view
Nellie Mae Rowe, Untitled (Landscape with Black Girl), ca. 1980, crayon on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Chuck and Jan Rosenak and museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, 1997.124.131
Untitled (Landscape with Black Girl)
Dateca. 1980
crayon on paper
Not on view

Exhibitions

Media - 1985.66.404 - SAAM-1985.66.404_1 - 9039
Picturing the American Buffalo: George Catlin and Modern Native American Artists
October 11, 2019March 13, 2020
Picturing the American Buffalo: George Catlin and Modern Native American Artists examines representations of buffalo and their integration into the lives of Native Americans on the Great Plains in the 1830s and in the twentieth century.

More Artworks from the Collection

Nellie Mae Rowe, Church Lady in Pants Suit, 1980, crayon and pencil on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment and the American Women's History Initiative Acquisitions Pool, administered by the Smithsonian American Women's History Initiative, 2021.29.9
Church Lady in Pants Suit
Date1980
crayon and pencil on paper
Not on view
Man Ray, Détachement-soulever le fil-regarder le dessín, 1970, felt-tipped pen and ink, crayon, pencil, string and postage stamp on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Juliet Man Ray, 1980.102.3
Détachement-soulever le fil-regarder le dessín
Artist
Date1970
felt-tipped pen and ink, crayon, pencil, string and postage stamp on paper
Not on view
Bill Beirne, Cross Reference, production notes (directional diagram), 1976, crayon, pencil, and ink on paper with additions in collage, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Gene Davis Memorial Fund, 2015.6.6, © 1976, Bill Beirne
Cross Reference, production notes (directional diagram)
Date1976
crayon, pencil, and ink on paper with additions in collage
Not on view