Quinnah

Quinnah at the Smithsonian American Art Museum is one of Sharp's portrait studies of individual Native Americans painted during his years at the Crow Agency in Montana and his earlier trips through the Southwest. Sharp was one of the founding members of the Taos Society of Artists and dedicated much of his career to painting Native American subjects with a seriousness that went beyond the picturesque tourism characterising much Western art. The Smithsonian's collection of his Native American portraits is the most comprehensive in any public institution, representing his systematic attempt to document individual identity rather than generic types.

Sharp's portrait technique is direct and observational, using warm, earthy pigments to render skin tones and the textures of clothing and adornment. The Taos light gave his portraits a particular warmth and clarity, and he preserved this quality in his approach to individual characterisation.