File consists of one signed copy of a portrait of an unidentified Indigenous man by artist W. Langdon Kihn. Portrait was gifted to Norman Luxton by Kihn in 1922.
1 drawing : portrait, pencil and ink ; 29 x 37.5 cm
History / Biographical
Wilfred Langdon Kihn (1898-1957) was an American artist born in Brooklyn, New York. Kihn was best known for his illustrated portraits of American and Canadian Indigenous people, including members of the Blackfoot, Navajo, Pueblo and Tsimshian communities. The individuals in Kihn's portraits were most often depicted wearing traditional and ceremonial clothing rather than their typical clothes.
Kihn's art career began in 1919 when he travelled to Montana and created some of his earliest portraits while visiting the Blackfeet Reservation. Throughout the 1920s, Kihn travelled extensively in Canada and the United States, creating portraits of individuals from a diverse range of Indigenous communities. Many of these portraits were put on display as part of a travelling exhibition organized by the Brooklyn Museum. In 1935, Kihn was commissioned by National Geographic to produce Indigenous portraits for publications; this ultimately led to a two-decade career with National Geographic.
Scope & Content
File consists of one signed copy of a portrait of an unidentified Indigenous man by artist W. Langdon Kihn. Portrait was gifted to Norman Luxton by Kihn in 1922.
Notes
Portrait is signed in the bottom left corner: "To "Norm" Luxton From his friend W. Langdon Kihn. 1922"