Talk:Edward S. Curtis

timeline

Is it worth returning to the timeline to do a little fact checking? Volume 8, for example, was published in 1911, not 1912. DCavendish (talk)

divorce etc.

??? This article could be much improved by the condensation of personal matters, such as the divorce.DGG 00:06, 23 December 2006 (UTC)

decline

I removed the comment about the reason Curtis' work only selling 280 because it was the Great Depression. Subscriptions had been placed well in advance, some going as far back as 1906 and in any case the total production was never going to exceed 500. The North American Indian was targeted at a small wealthy demographic. RobS

In the Land of the Headhunters

I think Curtis' only motion picture, "In the Land of the Headhunters", deserves a brief discussion. It is mentioned in the time line, but this work was exceptional and its significance may be debated. It predates the landmark documentary "Nanook of the North", and it is a similar type of film. Nanook of the North is commonly considered the first feature length documentary, although it is criticized for staging many scenes and scenarios. In the Land of the Headhunters was not a documentary proper, as it told a story from Kwakiutl legend, but this was presented as an ethnographic subject, and it is known that Robert Flaherty visited Curtis and viewed his film before he made Nanook. The only known print of Curtis' film was damaged in a fire. The remaining footage was reconstructed in 1972 and re-titled "In the Land of the War Canoes", by the scholars who reconstructed it. It is an amazing artifact and it is the only reason I know who Edward S. Curtis is. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 208.120.68.138 (talk) 22:17, 11 October 2007 (UTC)

Opinion rather than fact, extremely biased and has no citations to the claims

"In fact, it is doubtful that Curtis did anything disreputable or intentionally misleading considering his lifelong dilligence to this art. His obvious intention was to showcase the American Indian in "their own element" as accurately as possible which provided the only credible motive to his removing Western materials, e.g. "a clock", from his photographs which were out of place anachronistically with "pure" Indian culture. The same motivation can be applied to costuming and posing of the native Americans which, contrary to his intention of exposé, gave the impression of idealism beyond his actual intention of realism, albeit euphemistic." — Preceding unsigned comment added by 174.117.92.237 (talk) 17:10, 10 March 2012 (UTC)