IN AND AMONG THE VALLEYS and woodlands of the Mississippi and Minnesota Rivers, Seth Eastman met the native people who had lived in the area for many generations. These lands were the home of the people known as the Dakota and the Ojibwe. Here they lived and moved with the plant and animal life that supported their existence as naturally as the seasons move over the earth.

On one hand, Seth Eastman’s arrival in the area that was to become Minnesota was unfortunate. His presence can be considered a symbol of the losses suffered by Native Americans. On the other hand, his work to record his observations and understanding of the Dakota helps us today. His watercolor paintings are beautiful pieces of art and they give all of us, Natives and non-Natives, an appreciation of the Dakota life during a time of transition and upheaval.