Kurz Sketching

Portrait of Kurz

NPS Photo

Rudolf Freidrich Kurz (1818-1871)

Kurz was a clerk for the 1851-1852 season, and painted several different portraits during his time. Edwin Denig asked him to paint a portrait of him where his eyes follow you as you move across the room. He also painted portraits of Alexander Culbertson, Natoh (Denig&#’;s Choteau. He was also asked to white-wash the fort walls, a job he did not enjoy.

Because of his sketches and paintings, Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site was able to recreate buildings and structures from 1851. His eye for detail and his journal helped historians understand the everyday work at Fort Union and its historic importance.

Left image
This is a sketch from 1851 of the bourgeois house and courtyard. In the courtyard is the flagpole with many people milling about.
Credit: Kurz, Friedrich. Fort Union. 1326.1093. 1852. Tulsa: Gilcrease Museum, https://collections.gilcrease.org/object/13261093 (02/14/2017).

Right image
The image is from 2020 taken from the Southwest bastion. It includes reconstructed bourgeois house with a flagpole and carts.
Credit: NPS Photo

Activity

Since many of Rudolf Kurz's sketches were used to help with the fort's reconstruction, we have a task for you. Drawings of items were a time capsule for the future to be able to picture what something looked like long ago.

1. Pick a building, room, or still life object you want to draw.

2. Imagine if someone in the future wanted to reconstruct it.

3. Draw as many details as you can.

4. Once you are done, we'd like to see your sketch. You can post a photo of your masterpiece on our Facebook page.

Alternate Activity

Pick an object of importance to you. How would you describe it so that someone could recreate it? What details are significant? Post a written description of your object to our Facebook page.