A Winnebago Woman; Wife of O'-CHECK-KA or Four Legs, from the Aboriginal Portfolio

Art Historical Context

In the Smithsonian American Art Museum's collection, *A Winnebago Woman; Wife of O'-CHECK-KA or Four Legs* (1835) is a poignant lithographic print by James Otto Lewis, part of his seminal *Aboriginal Portfolio*. This graphic arts work captures the dignified likeness of a Ho-Chunk (Winnebago) woman, spouse of the notable leader O'-CHECK-KA, known as Four Legs. Lewis, an itinerant artist, sketched Native American portraits during pivotal treaty gatherings in the 1820s and 1830s, preserving these images through hand-colored lithography—a revolutionary printing technique that allowed for detailed,...