French Jesuit Nicolas Point spent six years, from 1841 to 1847, as a missionary to the Salish (Flathead), Blackfeet, and Coeur d’Alene people of the Rocky Mountains. He captured his sights in dozens of drawings that provide a lasting record of American Indian and Jesuit life in the 19th century northwest.
This exhibit brings Fr. Point’s 1840s sketches to life with a guided audio tour. Each section of the exhibit features a column of four of Point’s drawings, together with brief spoken commentary and text descriptions by Liam Brew. The full audio tour lasts 15 minutes.
Fr. Point’s original pencil sketches and watercolor drawings are conserved at the Midwest Jesuit Archives in Saint Louis, Missouri. They will be displayed in Chicago at LUMA as part of the Crossings and Dwellings Exhibition from July 19 to October 19, 2014.
Exhibit Chapters:
- Journey Across the Plains
- Arrival at the Rockies
- Untamed Wilderness
- The Land of the Flatheads
- Nomadic Life
- Christian and Native Lives Converge
- Institutionalized Christianity
- Hunting in the Frontier
- Nomad Movement
- A Family Hunt
- The Dangers of the Frontier
- Struggles to Thrive
- Religious Life of Ignace
- Crosses Throughout the Land
- Tensions Between Jesuits and Natives
- The Flathead Against the Blackfoot
- More Flathead, Blackfoot Battles
- Sudden Tribal Battles
- Friendly Interactions
- Their Lasting Influence