Wolf Ear

Wolf Ear at the Smithsonian American Art Museum continues the sequence of Crow portraits in Sharp's collection, with the name combining elements from the natural world in the specific cultural logic of Crow naming. Sharp's years at the Crow Agency made him the most sustained non-Native observer of Crow individual identity in the pictorial record of the period. His presence extended across multiple extended visits, building the trust and familiarity that made these portraits records of actual relationships rather than brief encounters with anonymous subjects.

The consistent format of Sharp's Crow portraits — warm palette, direct observation, attention to individual adornment — gives Wolf Ear a strong family resemblance with the other Smithsonian works while preserving the specific individuality of this subject's features and characteristic appearance.