Artwork
Three Zurumati Indians
Three Zurumati 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
Subject & Meaning
It portrays individuals in traditional dress, reflecting the artist's interest in documenting Indigenous peoples of North America.
The painting depicts three members of the Zuni community, captured during George Catlin's travels in the American Southwest. It portrays individuals in traditional dress, reflecting the artist's interest in documenting Indigenous peoples of North America. The work belongs to the portrait genre and was created in 1866 using oil on card mounted on paperboard.
It is part of the National Gallery of Art's collection in Washington, D.C., having entered the museum in 1965 through a gift from Paul Mellon.
Technique & Style
The work is an oil painting executed on card that is mounted on paperboard, a support typical for mid-19th-century portraiture. Its dimensions measure 46.6 centimeters in height by 61.6 centimeters in width, reflecting the scale common for full-length portraits of the period. The handling and condition of the piece have been documented through its conservation history at the National Gallery of Art, where it remains in the institution's collection.
Stylistically, the painting exemplifies Catlin's approach to portraiture, combining realistic representation with a focus on the sitter's individual character, as seen in the careful rendering of facial features and attire.
History & Provenance
George Catlin executed Three Zurumati Indians in 1866 as an oil painting on card mounted to paperboard. Following the artist's death in 1872, the work 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 directly from Elizabeth Wing Catlin.
The museum retained the painting until 1959, when it was sold through Kennedy Galleries of New York to Paul Mellon of Upperville, Virginia. Mellon subsequently donated the work to the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., in 1965.
Following its creation in 1866, the painting remained within the artist George Catlin's family, passing to his daughters upon his death. In 1912, Elizabeth Wing Catlin sold the work to the American Museum of Natural History. The museum deaccessioned the piece in 1959, selling it through Kennedy Galleries of New York to collector Paul Mellon of Upperville, Virginia.
Mellon subsequently gifted the artwork to the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., in 1965, where it currently resides in the collection.
No specific exhibition history or inventory accession numbers for these institutions are provided in the available records.
Overview
Created in 1862, Three Zurumati Indians is an oil painting on card that has been mounted on paperboard for support. The work presents three Native American men in traditional dress, each holding a weapon or staff, set before a sky rendered with blue cloud forms. The composition centers the middle figure, giving the piece a balanced, frontal arrangement.
Context
Catlin’s portraiture emerged during a period of rapid westward expansion, when Native societies were undergoing profound disruption. His aim was to document customs he feared would soon disappear, positioning his images as ethnographic records as well as artistic works. This painting reflects that dual purpose, offering a visual archive of Zurumati dress and weaponry amid the broader narrative of 19th‑century American frontier history.
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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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