Anecdote about Edward Curtis

In Curtis's time, although white photographers had set foot on the reservation, Indians still thought that photos would steal their spirit.

Soul, at the same time, because of lack of trust, is unwilling to talk about its cultural life with white people. As you can imagine, Curtis had to try to persuade the Indians to accept him. "When every old man leaves, an irreplaceable message goes with him." He is determined to find the elders as the carrier of tribal culture, listen to their stories about the past, and sort out the information from 25 aspects, such as organization, religion, diet, dance, clothing and marriage. His sincerity touched many tribal leaders. In this way, in the past 30 years, Curtis, who was called a "photographer" by Indians, traveled to more than 80 Indian tribes west of the Mississippi River and recorded the various life forms of Indians with his lens. Curtis is very talented in photography. /kloc-When I was 0/2 years old, I made my own camera and taught myself photography. As an adult, he established a photography studio in Seattle and soon became the most popular photographer in the region. Curtis, who has a steady income, likes to travel in nature. 1898, Curtis rescued a group of scientists who were lost and in distress in the mountains, including George Bird Ginell, an authority on American Indian culture research. Their acquaintance contributed to Curtis' trip to the Great Plains in 1900. There, he walked into the Indian tribe and witnessed a large-scale sun dance performance that was very rare at that time. The life and customs mixed with mystery, wildness, dignity and pride deeply touched him, and at the same time gave him a sense of urgency-this is a culture that is drifting away, and he wants to leave a sacred heritage about indigenous culture for future generations with lenses and words. This expedition became the beginning of his cultural journey to India.

A controversial photographer

Some critics think that Curtis's works distort the background of the times. The United States set up Indian reservations in the west, not only to put

Indians are isolated from the white community, at the same time, they also shoulder the function of "civilization". So in the era of Curtis, the life of Indians has begun to be influenced by modern life. In order to show the Indian lifestyle that has not been "polluted" by white culture, Curtis either asked the Indians to put on their ancestors' costumes and reproduce some scenes and ceremonies, or carefully eliminated some modern objects, such as carriages, alarm clocks, metal tools, modern costumes, cars and motorboats. When processing the negative. Others pointed out that Curtis's works unilaterally described the peaceful and beautiful side of Indian life, but deliberately avoided the desperate side of Indian life at the turn of the 20th century.

Compared with criticism, affirmative voice is obviously the mainstream, especially the historical value of Curtis's works has won high praise. Inspired by his photos and words, some tribes restored some traditions and religious ceremonies. Experts pointed out that Curtis was actually full of contradictions in the filming process. On the one hand, he felt the beauty of Indian tradition, on the other hand, he thought that their only hope for survival was to leave the tradition far behind and integrate into the mainstream American society. All he has to do is to keep this beauty and keep an eternal memory for a culture that he thinks is about to disappear. Curtis's practice may be a little "posturing", but today, a hundred years later, even if a photographer has Curtis's enthusiasm and persistence, time may not allow him to do the same thing.