Found this link to a wonderful collection of all 20 volumes of Edward S. Curtis's Native American photos digitized.

Wonderful to look through.

http://curtis.library.northwestern.edu/curtis/toc.cgi

Excellent website,Paul.
Thanks a bunch.

Regards:Wayne

Paul,

Found a website a number of years ago. Purchased the CD, and have many of those pictures hanging on my office wall.

http://www.thehistoricalarchive.com/pro ... n--85.html



They are one of my favorite things about my war room.

I also found two coffee table size books with Curtis pictures in them. Man knew how to take a photograph.....

Take care,

Joe

It's really interesting to follow some of the links. There is an original complete 20 volume set for sale if you're interested Joe (with some signed copies) . They don't give a price, but do say that a couple sets have sold at auction in the last few years for between $1.45 and $1.7 million.

Lots of neat stuff to look at if you dig around a little bit here...

http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/award98/ien ... thome.html

Paul,

I have been a Curtis fan for many years now. I'm afraid the prices you mentioned would put too large of a dent in my savings.

On the other hand, I do like to collect what I can afford:



Take care,

Joe

I read a really interesting short commentary on Curtis the other through one of those links I posted. It was complimentary of Curtis as an artistic talent and photographer capturing the Native American images as he did, but at the same time it was critical of Curtis's attempts to portray himself as an ethnologist in some respects.

The article claimed that Curtis often paid the Native Americans to pose for him, placed them in specific clothing and settings for "show" and even in some cases retouched photos afterwards to remove things that were in the scenes that he felt didn't belong (they mention a case where there was a clock in one of the scenes between 2 Native Americans sitting inside a dwelling that was removed later from the photograph).

It doesn't take away from the artistic way he captured his subjects, but it does put a bit of a damper on the idea that he was just out there collecting random images as they occurred.

Paul,

It becomes obvious, once you see enough of his work, that Curtis, along with many others, posed his shots. He was trying to convey the picture of the Native Americans before......us.

That life had a reality of its own. He could not go back in time to record things as they were, so he brought that time to his camera. I can't fault the man's art or his methods.

I enjoy the results, without giving them more meaning than is needed for that enjoyment. I have also researched his history. Another interesting photographer's history, is that of Camillus "Buck" Sydney Fly.

Take care,

Joe

cubfan64,

I saw your post about the Edward Curtis book set. I have that complete 20 volume set including the 4 supplement volumes that go with the 20 books.

You have to be careful if you are thinking of buying a set, especially on line. The 1.45 to 1.7 million price would only be in line for an original set with all 4 supplement volumes and each signed by Curtis. These books were published over a 23 year period beginning in 1907 and ending in 1930. Many of the collections for sale are a combination of 2nd, 3rd and later printings. If you buy a set, make sure all the volumes are from the SAME printing and not mixed.

My set and the 4 supplement volumes are all 2nd printing, and none are signed. They are worth a LOT of money but no where near 1.45 million. I've gotten numerous offers to buy the set but would never sell them at any price.
They are extremely rare as a complete, non mixed set, and if someone tells you they have an all original set, no mixed printings, make sure you see them before you buy them !

Steven

Thanks for the advice Steven - I'm afraid as much as I enjoy the photographs, I'll never be in a financial situation where I could hope to purchase a complete set. What a wonderful conversation those books must be for you though!

Paul

cubfan64 Paul,

While most people know of the Edward Curtis photographs of native Americans, not many are aware of his ethnology and historical work and that is what the 20 volumes contain, a wealth of knowledge about the native American tribes, bands and clans before and after the intervention by the white man and the reservations. That is why I have the set, I have read every volume numerous times. A full set is still out there for sale at a fairly reasonable price but will be a mixed printing set and a mixed use set of variable quality.

Steven