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education and knowledge with expansion. As most indigenous peoples were illiterate at the beginning of the expansion period, this can be seen as a further justification of expansion as indigenous people began to attend government or church-operated schools in the late 1800s to gain literacy. It is, however, more apt to consider the education of native children at the time to be cruel as they were forced to attend boarding schools where they were forbidden to speak their native language.
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resulting in the forced relocation of these tribes to smaller reservations with little compensation for their land. This depiction in the painting provides a poignant visual representation of the complex and often brutal history of westward expansion in
America, inviting us to reflect on the human cost of progress.
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In the bottom right of the painting, we observe farmers diligently tilling a field, a clear symbol of the
Midwest as a developed and colonized region. This symbolizes the relentless push of settlers from the East to the West. This movement was facilitated by treaties with native tribes, often
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were considered a key example of successes in westward expansion, Columbia bringing railways and telegraph lines with her to the new West symbolized the cultural advantages of the expansion. Additionally, Columbia is carrying with her a "School Book," which may be interpreted as her bringing
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Americans. As sunlight and brightness are associated with God, the painting can serve as a metaphor for
Americans considering expanding and exploring the land beyond the states as a God-given right; manifest destiny was an often used justification for expansion.
306:, the personification of the United States, and on her head is what Crofutt calls "The Star of the Empire." Columbia represents progress, which moves from the light-skied east to the dark and treacherous West, leading settlers who follow her either on foot or by
302:, this 11.50 by 15.75 inches (29.2 cm × 40.0 cm) masterpiece was commissioned in 1872 by George Crofutt, a publisher of American Western travel guides and has since been frequently reproduced. The woman in the center is
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John Gast uses this painting to convey the idea of manifest destiny that is widely known in
America at this time. Much of the west was still occupied by Native Americans in
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298:, a painting of profound historical significance, has become a seminal example of American Western Art. Serving as an allegory for manifest destiny and American
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can be seen in the background, while farmers who have settled in the
Midwest are featured in the foreground. As Columbia moves westward,
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wire with one hand and carries a school book in the other. On the right side of the painting, in the East,
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leading settlers and bringing sunlight westward can be identified as a metaphor for
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Short biography, list of references, and examples of work on askart.com
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This artwork is a standard reference in conversations regarding
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New approved method of zinc etching or photo-zinc-engraving
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GAST JOHN, artist & lithographer, 39 Park pl. h B'klyn
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The Autry Museum of the
American West’s Collections Online
409:"Autry's Collections Online – painting American Progress"
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Works by Gast from the
Department of Drawings and Prints
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Beyond "American
Progress": The Legacy of John Gast
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by historian Martha A. Sandweiss of
Amherst College
432:"Paintings of Manifest Destiny: Mapping the Nation"
338:(bison) flee from her and the settlers who follow.
322:. Columbia is the figure of progress as she lays a
267:who lived and worked most of his life during 1870s
60:. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.
491:Entry in Goulding's New York City directory (1877)
471:Includes high resolution version of the painting.
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362:, signifying positive new beginnings for
120:Learn how and when to remove this message
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201:11 1/2 in × 15 3/4 in. (29.2 cm × 40 cm)
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419:from the original on August 11, 2024.
509:Works by Gast in the general Catalog
430:Aikin, Roger Cushing (Autumn 2000).
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255:is an 1872 painting by
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530:by Samantha Rothenberg
467:Spirit of the frontier
346:On westward expansion
16:Painting by John Gast
54:improve this article
192:Settler colonialism
69:"American Progress"
300:westward expansion
574:Paintings of deer
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538:Categories
395:References
308:stagecoach
198:Dimensions
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465:Essay on
372:railroads
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257:John Gast
229:Accession
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