During the 19th century, many American artists embraced the theme of the "Vanishing Indian." By depicting Native Americans as disappearing, such artists spread the idea that the extinction of Native groups was unavoidable. At stake was an accurate accounting of Indigenous peoples’ experiences in the United States. In this talk, Dr. Laura E. Smith will reveal the hidden narratives of Indigenous erasure prevalent in American art of the 19th and early 20th centuries. She will also respond to works by contemporary Native artists.

Laura E. Smith is a professor of art history in the Department of Art, Art History and Design at Michigan State University, where she teaches course in the arts of the Americas, Indigenous arts, and photography. She is the author of Horace Poolaw, Photographer of American Indian Modernity (University of Nebraska Press, 2016).