This painting shows a group of people standing together outdoors. In the center of the group is a person with red-and-white body paint creating intricate designs on their otherwise nude body. The rest of the people form a line behind them, and these people are dressed in tan garments including shawls and tunics. Some of them have red, white, and black feathers in their dark hair. A child on the far right holds a pot on their head, while another person on the left carries a long spear and what looks like a fan of feathers. Many of the people wear decorative necklaces and earrings. The ground is grassy, and surrounding the feet of the central person are several items such as shoes, a shield-like object, a quiver, and a curved object. The background shows a grassy plain meeting a pale-blue sky. Surrounding the central painting is a border of white paper, and around that is a pale-green frame.
Read the visual description

This painting shows a group of people standing together outdoors. In the center of the group is a person with red-and-white body paint creating intricate designs on their otherwise nude body. The rest of the people form a line behind them, and these people are dressed in tan garments including shawls and tunics. Some of them have red, white, and black feathers in their dark hair. A child on the far right holds a pot on their head, while another person on the left carries a long spear and what looks like a fan of feathers. Many of the people wear decorative necklaces and earrings. The ground is grassy, and surrounding the feet of the central person are several items such as shoes, a shield-like object, a quiver, and a curved object. The background shows a grassy plain meeting a pale-blue sky. Surrounding the central painting is a border of white paper, and around that is a pale-green frame.

National Gallery of Art · Painting

"Paint Me" - Apachee

George Catlin

Date
1855/1869
Medium
oil on card mounted on paperboard
Dimensions
overall: 46.6 x 62.2 cm (18 3/8 x 24 1/2 in.)
Classification
Painting
Accession number
1965.16.202
Credit line
Paul Mellon Collection
Time span
1851 to 1875
Department
CAB

Subjects and terms

  • painted surface
  • American
  • American Paintings, Catlin
  • North American Indian
  • portrait
  • Apachee
  • Eltono, warrior
Provenance

George Catlin [1796-1872]; by descent to his daughters, Clara Gregory Catlin, Louise Catlin Kinney, and Elizabeth Wing Catlin; purchased 1912 from Elizabeth Wing Catlin by the American Museum of Natural History; sold 1959 through (Kennedy Galleries, New York) to Mr. Paul Mellon, Upperville, VA; gift 1965 to the NGA.

NGA object ID 50510. Collection metadata is reproduced under CC0. This work is included because its NGA published-image record is marked open access; visitors should recheck the source record before substantial reuse.