Artwork
Four Mura Indians
Four Mura Indians is an oil painting by the American Folk Art artist George Catlin. It dates from 1862 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
About this work
Technique & Style
Executed in 1861, this portrait utilizes oil paint applied to a card support, which is subsequently mounted on paperboard.
Executed in 1861, this portrait utilizes oil paint applied to a card support, which is subsequently mounted on paperboard. The work measures 46.8 cm in height and 62.4 cm in width. As a painting by George Catlin, the piece functions within the portrait genre, though specific details regarding its current physical condition, handling history, or distinct stylistic maneuvers are not provided in the available records.
History & Provenance
The painting Four Mura Indians was created by George Catlin in 1861. It is executed in oil on card mounted on paperboard. The work remained in the artist's possession until his death in 1872, after which it passed by descent to his daughters: Clara Gregory Catlin, Louise Catlin Kinney, and Elizabeth Wing Catlin.
In 1912, the American Museum of Natural History purchased the piece from Elizabeth Wing Catlin. The museum later sold the painting in 1959 through Kennedy Galleries in New York to Paul Mellon of Upperville, Virginia. Mellon subsequently gifted the work to the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., in 1965, where it remains part of the collection.
Four Mura Indians is held by the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. The work entered the museum's collection in 1965 as a gift from Paul Mellon, following its acquisition in 1959 from Kennedy Galleries, New York, which had purchased it from Elizabeth Wing Catlin in 1912. The painting was originally created by George Catlin in 1861 and descended through his daughters before institutional acquisition.
The artwork is cataloged under the National Gallery of Art's collection with the accession number 65.10.44. It has been part of the museum's permanent display since its donation, contributing to exhibitions focused on American frontier art and George Catlin's body of work.
The provenance and accession details are documented in the National Gallery of Art's collection records, confirming its presence in the museum's holdings since 1965.
Context
Painted in 1861, this portrait of a Mura individual reflects George Catlin's ethnographic focus during his western expeditions, blending artistic documentation with emerging anthropological interest in Indigenous peoples. Its provenance traces from the artist's family to the American Museum of Natural History in 1912, then to Paul Mellon in 1959 before its 1965 donation to the National Gallery of Art, where it remains part of the collection. The work's significance is contextualized within Catlin's broader practice of documenting Native American subjects, a practice that contributed to 19th-century visual representations of Indigenous cultures in the United States.
Overview
Created in 1862, Four Mura Indians is an oil painting executed on a card support that has been affixed to a paperboard backing. The work presents a small group of individuals identified as members of the Mura tribe, arranged outdoors against an unadorned light backdrop. The composition is straightforward, emphasizing the figures rather than any surrounding landscape.
Subject & Meaning
The canvas portrays two men positioned at the front, each holding a staff and dressed in minimal clothing adorned with beadwork; one of them displays feathered hair. Adjacent to them stands a woman clutching an infant, her attire featuring a fringed dress. The grouping offers a glimpse of everyday attire and familial ties within the Mura community as observed by the artist.
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Artist & collection
Artist
George Catlin ( KAT-lin; July 26, 1796 – December 23, 1872) was an American lawyer, painter, author, and traveler, who specialized in portraits of Native Americans in the American frontier.
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