Two images depict the same occasion, which is the Medicine Lodge Peace Treaty signing. The first image demonstrates the USA government and the tribe leaders meeting at the special place. This place is considered as a traditional place for Native Americans. In the second image, there are colorful traditional clothes of the Native American tribes. People in black suits and hats are from the American government. Possibly, they are binding the trees, which symbolizes assigning reservations for the Native American tribes.
Two images have many differences and they refer to the culture that created each of them. There are several visual conventions that can help to analyze how culture influences an artist’s vision of the world. The first image depicted by Howling Wolf includes people around, such as warriors and women, however, Taylor’s image is directed only to the grove (Sayre pp). This tells about the differences between the Native American and an American journalist. The Native American artist depicted mainly women sitting around, which may tell that their culture admires and respects women. Moreover, when drawing people Howling Wolf emphasizes their appearance by coloring their clothes and appearance. This can tell that Native Americans value individuals in their tribe. However, Taylor does not pay a lot of attention to the appearance of the people from the image, it is hard to distinguish them. This refers to the ignorance of the personal characteristics of people in American culture. In addition, Taylor’s picture is very realistic, the nature and people there are looking close to the real-life image. This corresponds to the idea that American culture is realistic and straightforward. Such different visual conventions may tell information about the culture that created and influenced the image.
I think that the authors of the two images assumed different roles. Every artist assumes a particular role and conveys their vision of the world through the art pieces (Sayre pp). Taylor assumed the role of depicting the historical event that is important for his government. He acted and performed as a journalist who is depicting a certain occasion. Taylor assumed the role of the people’s friend and wanted them to remember the treaty as something positive. He focused on their personalities and used bright colors to give a positive tone to the image. Different artists have various roles, which they identify by themselves.
Works Cited
Sayre, Henry M. “The Critical Process, Thinking about Visual Conventions”. A World of Art, edited by (Editor’s name), Pearson, 2016, pp.
Sayre, Henry M. “Roles of the Artist”. A World of Art, edited by (Editor’s name), Pearson, 2016, pp.