NABU-NAA-KEE-SHICK or The One Side of the Sky, A Chippewa Chief, from The Aboriginal Portfolio

Art Historical Context

Behold *Nabu-naa-kee-shick, or The One Side of the, A Chippewa* (1835), a striking lithographic print by James Otto Lewis part of the pioneering *Aboriginal Portfolio*. This full-length portrait captures the dignified presence of a Chippewa leader in traditional dress, his name evoking the vast skies of the American Midwest. Lewis, an early 19th-century artist traveler, sketched Native American delegates during significant gatherings like the 1826 Treaty of St Peters, transforming these live sittings into one of the first published collections of Indigenous portraits. Printed as a graphic arts piece, the work exemplifies the era's lithographic technique, which allowed for detailed reproduction of textures—from the intricate beadwork and feathers of the chief's regalia to his poised stance. Published in Philadelphia around 1835, *The Aboriginal Portfolio* offered Eastern audiences rare glimpses into tribal leaders amid rapid U.S. expansion and treaty negotiations, preserving cultural identities on the brink of change. Housed in the Smithsonian American Art Museum, this print highlights the intersection of art and ethnography, inviting visitors to reflect on Native resilience and the artistic drive to document vanishing traditions. A testament to Lewis's eye for nobility, it remains a vital window into Chippewa heritage.