Grand Cañon of the Colorado
ca. 1880
Medium
Photography-Photoprint
Classification
Photography-Photoprint
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase from the Charles Isaacs Collection made possible in part by the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment
Accession Number
1994.91.85
Tags
About this artwork
William Henry Jackson spent the years between 1870 and 1879 as the official photographer for Ferdinand V. Hardenâs U.S. Geological and Geographical Survey of the Territories. While working on this federally supported expedition, Jackson photographed the largely unsettled Western frontier, including the region that is now called Yellowstone National Park. Jacksonâs photographs of Western subjects hung in the parlors of thousands of homes, and stimulated interest in the region among the busine...
Art Historical Context
In the late 19th century, William H Jackson captured the majestic vastness of the American West the official photographer for Ferdinand V.’s U.S. Geological and Geographical Survey the Territories, from 0 to 1879. *Grand Cañon of Colorado*, a photoprint from around 1880, exemplifies his pioneering work documenting the untamed frontier. This image likely depicts the dramatic depths of the Grand Canyon, its towering mountains, winding Colorado, and perhaps a figure group to convey human scale against nature’s grandeur—hallmarks of Jackson’s expedition photography. Jackson’s photographs were rev...