Eugene Standing Elk

Among the surviving examples of 19th century Plains Ledger Art, the six drawings attributed to Northern Cheyenne warrior artist Eugene Standing Elk (ca. 1857-1926) are remarkable. Few other Ledger Drawings predating the 20th century are rendered predominantly in watercolour and ink. While most Ledger Drawings speak to the martial accomplishments of particular warrior artists - the vast majority depict battle scenes - the Standing Elk drawings picture a male protagonist and his sweetheart in various stages of courting. Among the Northern Cheyenne, as with other Plains nations, courting was a highly formalised process that could extend over long periods of time. Standing Elk’s drawings are likely sequential, recording several meetings between the pair. Both are formal dressed in fine attire, their details rendered with remarkable delicacy. The woman is shown in plaid, checked, and striped trade cloth, with fringes that would sway dynamically with movement; and the man frequently cloaked in a black woollen blanket with a white selvedge of the kind traded amongst Indigenous peoples since the late 18th century. Several images show the couple wrapped in the same blanket, a sign that the courting procedures have concluded. Among Plains nations, walking together walk wrapped within a man’s blanket was a public expression of a couple’s engagement. As in warfare, the warrior has demonstrated perseverance and great skill in his chivalry. The Standing Elk drawings celebrate the virility and social prowess of the male protagonist, likely the artist himself. The drawings capture the courting process with an unusual familiarity and sweetness. Small in format, the focused composition centred entirely around the pair of figures greatly adds to their sense of intimacy.