Gallery review: Views and Visions: Prints of the American West, 1820-1970

by Jake Kemp

FORT WORTH — The “American West” of the 19th and early 20th centuries possesses a mythology as soaring and storied as its landscape. With one walk through Amon Carter Museum's new Views and Visions: Prints of the American West, 1820-1970 exhibit, you're sure to come away with a sense of how art and imagery helped that mythology develop. But, you'll also come away with a feeling of how constraining and misleading the conventional narrative of the west can be.

Dr. Rick Stewart, the curator of Views and Vision, believes the chance to compare and contrast artists' perceptions of the American west is what makes the exhibit so unique. “One of the most interesting features in the exhibition will be the juxtaposition of particular works, sometimes made more than a century apart, that will show curious similarities of intriguing differences in artistic vision.”

The exhibit, comprised of works in the museum's permanent collection, is organized by subject matter rather than chronologically. This approach helps the theme to resonate more powerfully with the viewer.

The first section focuses on the landscape of the region, and it is easy to recognize what the curator is attempting to achieve right from the start. Several depictions of very similar scenes are positioned together, although the mood and feel of the works are very different. “The earliest views of the west are much more romantic and grandiose than those from the 20th century,” said Stewart. “Twentieth century artists offered a less optimistic look: for example, portraying arid mountains. Nineteenth century artists tended not to do that; they were trying to idealize the west.”

This “artist-as-salesman” motif is one that is not often discussed, but it is undeniable when the older works are contrasted with works from the 20th century. Many of the earlier prints look like they came out of a travel agency brochure, while those from later years are more likely to utilize only black, white, and gray tones. “Early artists wanted to show the west as having abundant, endless resources, which we know now to be far from true,” Stewart said.

The same evolution of perception and artistic vision can be seen in depictions of the Native Americans as well. Stewart points to an early 20th century image of a solemn, long-faced Native American. “This portrait suggest the heavy burden of history they have felt. Contrast these with earlier prints which are more matter of fact – the look more formidable and proud,” he said. Most of the earlier images of the Native Americans look like they could have appeared in an encyclopedia – they have an informative, instructional feel. Later, the natives were often portrayed more emotionally – their faces showing troubled, contemplative expressions.

Stewart decided to accompany the works in the exhibit with excerpts from the works of author and historian Wallace Stegner, a noted authority on the subject. A quote of Stegner's, which most summarily describes the theme of the exhibit, is found right at the entrance: “The West is a region of extraordinary variety within its abiding unity, and of an iron immutability beneath its surface of change. The most splendid part of the American habitat, it is also the most fragile.”

So what elements contribute to this “abiding unity” and “iron immutability?” Stewart believes that one of the few things that can be generalized about the artists' visions of the west is their perceptions of space. Romantic or realized, early or later, all of the artists were dealing with a massive, expansive landscape the likes of which are not seen anywhere else in the country.

“We want people to see how artists viewed the American west, to show the different points of view from early on to later in the 20th century when it had been built up and changed,” Stewart said. “People should look at the exhibit and realize a lot of the obstacles and problems that came from living in the West are still problems today. In many cases, none of it is new.”

The exhibit opens on September 19 and runs until January 10, 2010. Admission is free.