ON EDWARD CURTIS

It was the curiosity on everyday lives on why photography was invented but as industrial nation involved themselves in the imperialist adventures around the world, photography emerged as an effective tool to satisfy the thirst of the people in basic information such as physical evidence on the appearance of an individual and the beauty of nature.
Photography also emanates realism to what was the real story that happened far beyond the present. Photography brings the past into the future. The likes of Matthew Brady, Felice Beato, Timothy O’ Sullivan and George Cook and many others who documented the gruesome effects of war used their craft to bring information. Though many purists and critics believed that during those early days photographs may not be used as a real artifacts of the past. They dispute that many of these photographs are fake and was often set-up or posed pictures and for them this kind of setting up and manipulating the subject may provoke argument on the truthfulness and veracity of the events that happened in the past.
This argument may be true. Let us take the case of Edward Curtis who spent his time and money (thanks for J.P Morgan who believed in his talent and financially supported Curtis) documenting everyday chores of the American Indians. Most of Curtis’s photographs of Indians were obviously posed photographs but this is not really the issue here. Those pictures were really set-up or posed pictures because of the fact that it might be during those times taking pictures say an American Indian riding on a speeding horse showing the movement. I don’t think photographers during those years have had the ability in taking photographs of a moving subject. This is because during this epoch of time camera was still not capable of doing it. Inventors were still squeezing their minds to improve the camera.
The year of 1839 towards 1890 was the years were documentary photography started to make its path in the world of photography. This genre of photography come to refer to pictures taken with an intent to inform rather than to express personal feeling as what Frank Hoy defines in his photojournalism book documentary photographers works is straight forward, yet it implies a commentary.
Curtis’s pictures are definitely transcended the reality of what was the physical appearance of American Indian during those days. It depicts its natural way of how they leave on those days.
I do believe that most of Curtis’s photos were manipulated by him and this does not mean that those photographs were not originally American Indian tribes. But what moves Curtis to manipulate his pictures was because he wanted to characterize American Indian as part of social composite with marvelous way of life.
The portrait genre of Curtis created a mirror that would suggests how American Indian progress. The photographs described social, ethic, and class affiliation, or may, in some measure, be invoked in contrast in them.
Though Curtis used his artistic sensitivity by setting-up and or posing his subject the ethnicity of the subject still remains the intact.
We may also reasoned out why Curtis did such an imposing style of taking those pictures was because during those days there is no rule that he should follows.
And also because of the fact that Curtis was also a photographer who has family that he must be supporting he’s craft was his way for bread and butter.
Curtis was also a businessman with little capital to pursue his dream in documenting American Indians. It may also be conclude that Curtis intention was really to sell the pictures. We cannot blamed Curtis for this but rather we must put him to the pathom.