The Ambush 1896

Charles M. Russell created this painting, called 'The Ambush', to document a scene from the American West. Russell was a storyteller, and here he paints an exciting scene with a group of cowboys lying in wait, ready to attack. This image speaks to America's fascination with the West during Russell’s time. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, the West was seen as a place of adventure, freedom, and opportunity; but this view often overlooked the displacement and violence inflicted on Native American communities. Russell was part of a group of artists who mythologized the West; in a way that idealized the cowboy lifestyle while ignoring the complex social realities of the time. To understand this artwork fully, we have to look at photography and literature from the period, to get a wider sense of how the West was represented. We must be conscious that Russell's artistic vision was shaped by the cultural biases of his era.