Profile Portrait of Sitting Bull by Henry Farny

What it is

This is a painted profile portrait by the artist Henry Farny, a contemporary illustrator who sketched Plains peoples he encountered. It shows an older man in a long feathered war bonnet of white and dark brown feathers, a beaded headband, a beaded necklace, and a white shirt.

Why it matters

Farny's work is an artist's record of Sitting Bull, made by someone from outside Lakota culture who observed and recorded Plains peoples for outside audiences. It shows how Sitting Bull's image was captured and circulated by non-Native artists during his lifetime.

Look closer

• What mood does the profile pose and lighting create?
• Why might Farny have chosen to show Sitting Bull in profile rather than facing forward?
• What can and can't a painted portrait like this tell us about the real person?