American Progress

American Progress
American Progress
Artist	John Gast
Year	1872
Medium	Oil on canvas
Subject	Manifest destiny, Settler colonialism
Dimensions	11 1/2 in × 15 3/4 in. (29.2 cm × 40 cm)
Location	Autry Museum of the American West, Los Angeles, California
Owner	Autry Museum of the American West
Accession	92.126.1
Website	Exhibit website

American Progress is an 1872 painting by John Gast, a Prussian-born painter, printer, and lithographer who lived and worked most of his life during 1870s in Brooklyn, New York. American Progress, an allegory of manifest destiny, was widely disseminated in chromolithographic prints. It is now held by the Autry Museum of the American West in Los Angeles, California.^[1]

Description

American Progress, a painting of profound historical significance, has become a seminal example of American Western Art. Serving as an allegory for manifest destiny and American westward expansion, 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 Columbia, 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 stagecoach, horseback, Conestoga wagon, wagon train, or riding steam trains. Columbia is the figure of progress as she lays a telegraph wire with one hand and carries a school book in the other. On the right side of the painting, in the East, New York City can be seen in the background, while farmers who have settled in the Midwest are featured in the foreground. As Columbia moves westward, indigenous people and a herd of buffalo (bison) flee from her and the settlers who follow.

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 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.

On westward expansion

This artwork is a standard reference in conversations regarding the American sentiment of expansion in the 1800s. The depiction of Columbia leading settlers and bringing sunlight westward can be identified as a metaphor for expansion, signifying positive new beginnings for early 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.

Significance

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 1872, but Gast portrays the idea that America was destined to expand to this area as part of Manifest Destiny.^[2]

References

^ "Autry's Collections Online – painting American Progress". The Autry Museum of the American West’s Collections Online. Archived from the original on August 11, 2024.
^ Aikin, Roger Cushing (Autumn 2000). "Paintings of Manifest Destiny: Mapping the Nation". The University of Chicago Press. 14 (3). Retrieved December 5, 2023.