William Robinson Leigh (1866-1955)

Details
William Robinson Leigh (1866-1955)

Indian Boy

signed 'W. Leigh' lower left--oil on canvas laid down on board
14 x 10in. (35.5 x 25.4cm.)

Lot Essay

RELATED LITERATURE
D.D. Cummins, William Robinson Leigh, Norman, University of Oklahoma Press and Tulsa, Thomas Gilcrease Institute of American History and Art, 1988, p. 59

Indian Boy bears close resemblance to several other known variations of this subject. Duane Cummins suggests that Leigh began executing single portraits in order to emphasize the individuality and personal worth of his subjects. In particular, Leigh often produced images of Indians alone and in harmony with nature. Cummins writes that works like Indian Boy exhibit "the qualities of human dignity, self-respect, assurance and inward contemplation." (D.D. Cummins, p. 137)