The William F. Cody Archive: Documenting the life and times of Buffalo Bill

Commentary on "Phillip Standing Soldier, Sioux Indian"

Käsebier's photographs of Phillip Standing Soldier are great examples of the artistic qualities that she hoped to capture. They are showing him in full regalia which is appropriate for a younger member of the troupe, and of the tribe. Phillip, like Sammy Lone Bear, had been educated at the government-run Indian schools in New England so he was able to communicate with Käsebier in English and potentially learn more about just what she was interested in in this portrait sitting, and more about her own style of photography maybe than some of the elders who were sitting for her. These images are more like what we've seen with some of the other portraits of the businessmen, the artist friends that Gertrude Käsebier was also photographing at the very same time. And, again, Phillip is one of those Indians that she develops a long-standing relationship with and correspondance with.