Paul Kane is a Canadian painter who forever captures the life of American Indians for posterity

Paul Kane (September 3, 1810 February 20, 1871) is an outstanding Canadian artist of the 19th century, a master of portrait, landscape and everyday life genres. Kane Paul mainly painted pictures in which he depicted the daily life of North American Indians, and his work is still the subject of study by professional ethnologists. The painter’s biography is closely connected with travels across the vast expanses of the western regions of North America, and his works are rightfully considered an important part of the cultural heritage of Canada.

Paul Caine also gained immense popularity among his contemporaries through his book The Artist’s Walking Among the Indians of North America. The colorful edition with illustrations by the author has become a real bestseller and has been translated into many European languages.

Biography

Paul Caine was born in the south of Ireland into the family of a professional British military man. His parents were English by birth, but soon after the father of the future artist retired, the family emigrated to Canada and settled in Toronto. Here Paul graduated from a local college in 1834, where, among other things, he learned the basics of painting from an ordinary drawing teacher.

The first stage of Kane’s professional career was the position of an artist at a furniture factory. At the same time, Paul began painting portraits of local residents, and in 1835 he took part in an exhibition for the first time, where his paintings were highly appreciated by the unassuming local public. At the same time, the aspiring artist met James Bowman, an American painter who urged the young man to travel to Europe in order to receive a full-fledged academic education.

But Kane had no money to travel to the Old World, so over the next few years he was forced to travel to cities in the Midwest, making a living by painting portraits. It was not until June 1841 that Paul saved up enough funds and from New Orleans went by steamer to Marseille. Upon arrival in Europe, the artist first of all decided to visit the Apennine Peninsula to get acquainted with the work of the best masters of painting from different historical eras. To this end, he visited all the major centers of the visual arts in Italy: Rome, Florence, Venice, Verona, Genoa, Milan and Naples.

Kane did not have the money to study in European academies, so he was engaged in self-education for a year

, and then, passing through Paris, went to London, from where he intended to sail to America. In the capital of the British Empire, Paul met the famous artist George Catlin, who lectured at the Egyptian Hall in Piccadilly. This meeting became fateful for Kane, under the influence of Kathleen, he decided to devote his career as an artist to describing the life of the North American Indians.

Returning to the New World in 1843, the artist first settled in the small town of Mobile, Alabama. Here he opened a small studio and for two years painted portraits of local residents in order to earn money to travel to the lands of the Indians. In 1845, Paul Caine traveled to Toronto, from where in early summer he set out on a tour of the central and western regions of Canada with a group of fur hunters.

Returning to Toronto before winter, the artist brought with him many sketches and sketches, on the basis of which he created a number of oil paintings. His work attracted the attention of not only the public, but also the influential Governor George Simpson (George Simpson), who commissioned the painter to write several works from the life of the Indians.

Kane’s second and final trip to the western regions of Canada lasted over 2 years.

In early May 1846, the artist embarked on a dangerous journey of several thousand kilometers. On the way, he had to experience many difficulties, repeatedly changing from canoe to horse, twice wintering in cold snow-covered forts, but his efforts were not in vain.

During the trip, Paul Caine was able to become closely acquainted with the life of the North American Indians and created hundreds of original sketches. From the trip, he also brought a huge collection of unique artifacts, which he carefully preserved for the rest of his life.

Paul Caine returned from a trip to Toronto in mid-October 1848 and took part in a local art exhibition a month later. The 240 sketches presented to the public were enthusiastically received by critics and spectators. But the most important result of the journey for the painter was the emergence of an influential sponsor George William Allan (George William Allan), who commissioned him to paint 100 paintings for a total of 20,000. This order forever saved Kane from financial problems, now he could fully devote himself to painting.

The 1850s became the pinnacle of the artist’s creative career. During this time, he created most of his famous masterpieces, took part in the World Exhibition in Paris and published an illustrated book about the life of the Indians. Paul married in 1853 and had four children in the marriage: two sons and two daughters. But already in the early 1860s, the artist’s vision began to deteriorate rapidly and he had to completely abandon painting.

The last part of his life, the master lived in abundance, surrounded by loved ones and fondled by fame. And on February 20, 1871, after walking, Paul Kane died suddenly of a heart attack at the age of 60.

The most famous paintings by Paul Kane

Among the large number of works by the painter, there are many interesting works. And yet, some of the most famous paintings by Paul Kane include:

• “Scene in the Northwest. Portrait of J. Lefroy “(1846) the most expensive masterpiece of the master, sold in 2002 at Sotheby’s for 5 million. The canvas depicts an outstanding British scientist and traveler during one of his scientific expeditions.
• “A woman of the Chinook tribe with a child” (1848) is a work in which the artist skillfully depicted the smallest details of the life of an Indian mother and her little child.
• The Menominee Indians Hunt Salmon by Torchlight on the Fox River (1856) is a painting that gives the viewer a visual representation of the ancient ways of catching fish by the indigenous people of America.
• Death of the Big Serpent (1858–1862) is a work that captures the decisive moment of a duel between two Indian warriors in full combat gear.

Paul Kane is deservedly recognized today as one of the best artists who have devoted his work to describing the life of the Indians. Thanks to his works, in the 21st century, viewers can see the life of Native Americans untouched by European civilization