Questions/Discussion regarding Russell and Remington Trapper Paintings...

[FrontierTrapper92]

Posting in the plains section since some of these depictions take place after the mountain man era...Alfred Jacob Miller in 1837 visited the rendezvous and painted based off of what he saw. Charlie M. Russel and Fredrick Remington painted at a later date painted of what they thought the fur trade looked like, Russell paints "Free Trapper in 1911 and Remington painting mountain men in the 1880s-1890s. Alot of their later romanticising paintings of capotes and fur hats and such got mixed into our reenactments although some of that styling came after the fur trade (reservation boxy capote, drape fur hats and such, buckskin clad MM). A lot of these clothing items are considered farby today and it is best to go off of Millers paintings since they were in that era. Do you think that was the clothing styles of trappers remington and russell painted were based on sometime after the fur trade? Your thoughts? Hope my questions/discussion make sense, trying to get a discussion going for fun and knowledge. Heres some photos. Alfred Jacob Miller 1837 from the MM rendezvous time period;

Fredrick Remington 1880s-1890s? ;

Theres those boxy reservation-ish capotes and the hollywood clad mountain man. Russell; circa 1900s;

 

[Absoroka]

Bodmer and Clymer also painted about that era and did some interesting work. A modern artist that has done work published in many sources is David Wright. You might notice that most of Miller's figures are clad in heavily fringed buckskin clothing. Trappers likely wore what they had until it wore out and then went with what they could acquire from local tribes, or traders supplied by eastern sources.

 

[FrontierTrapper92]

Bodmer and Clymer also painted about that era and did some interesting work. A modern artist that has done work published in many sources is David Wright. You might notice that most of Miller's figures are clad in heavily fringed buckskin clothing. Trappers likely wore what they had until it wore out and then went with what they could acquire from local tribes, or traders supplied by eastern sources.

While modern, I just was looking up David Wrights paintings, wow! Thanks I’ll look up Clymer and Bodmer too. For a modern artist, David Wrights painting look very period correct.

 

[French Colonial]

While modern, I just was looking up David Wrights paintings, wow! Thanks I’ll look up Clymer and Bodmer too. For a modern artist, David Wrights painting look very period correct.

David has put a lot of work into making sure his paintings are period correct, he does his homework.

 

[Rifleman1776]

I have never been a fan of using paintings to validate historical facts. There are paintings of dogs taller than teepees and horses almost as big. To me, that discredits everything else in the scene. For expert information on these artists, visit the Gilcrease Museum near Tulsa. Great museum : Home

 

[tenngun]

I Think Miller painted real people in real clothing. And this matches with Osborn Russell describing MM dress.
However.
Records are pretty compleat about what was taken to rendezvous for trade.
Woolen pantaloons, woolen and linen shirts, woolen coats and factory made capotes, and shoes and boots
For all the ‘I took ‘ee fer an Injun’ looks Miller painted I would bet the average MM looked just like any working man ‘back in the States’
Miller was painting for the audience. People wanted to see ‘By God Mountain Men’ not longshoreman or express man or warehouse workers.
I THINK the paintings of Caleb Brigham come a lot closer to what the mountain men looked like

 

[Rifleman1776]

I THINK the paintings of Caleb Brigham come a lot closer to what the mountain men looked like

Agree. I have a Bingham print. It is one of my favorite wall hangings.

 

[Absoroka]

A possibility is that buckskin clothing was worn more by trappers with Native wives who made clothing for them. If the single trappers did not gamble and drink all their money away at rendezvous, they likely bought whatever the traders had to sell. Trappers clothed in buckskins also made a much more appealing picture for an artist. Even in today's world, artists and photographers don't want dull.