Green River Cliffs Possibly 1881

Thomas Moran painted "Green River Cliffs," showing a scene from the American West, at a time when the frontier was both romanticized and rapidly disappearing. Moran, like many artists of his time, was captivated by the landscape, but his work also reflects the complex relationship between westward expansion and the displacement of Native American communities. Notice how the Indigenous people are portrayed here, grouped and riding into the sunset, they are becoming a part of the landscape itself. Are they the focus, or just a detail? Moran's work lives within a tradition of depicting Native Americans, often caught between romanticizing them and erasing their individual identities. Consider how this painting invites us to reflect on whose stories are being told and whose are being left out, and remember that we must be critical of the narratives that shaped our understanding of the American West.