Untitled (Buffalos)

Description

Untitled (Buffalos) depicts a diorama from the National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C., of a traditional Native American hunting method in which plains bison were herded toward cliffs, forcing them to plunge to their death. Interdisciplinary artist David Wojnarowicz selectively framed a portion of the display in black and white as an allegory of the decade as he was dying of AIDS. At once analogy and piercing critique, the image embodies the tragedy of the pandemic and offers an indictment of a nation at odds with itself.

Untitled (Buffalos)

David Wojnarowicz

1988–89

Accession Number

238759

Medium

Gelatin silver print

Dimensions

102.9 × 121.9 cm (40 1/2 × 48 in.)

Classification

photograph

Museum

The Art Institute of Chicago

Chicago, United States

Credit Line

Purchased with funds provided by Eric and Liz Lefkofsky; Mary and Leigh Block and Wirt D. Walker Trust funds