Thanksgiving Day, a Centuries-Old Tradition Embodied in Culture and Art

This week is a festive one for Americans, with the nation celebrating a centuries-old holiday that takes root in the early days of the continent’s European settlers. Thanksgiving Day symbolizes the virtue of the first harvest that the Earth gave to newcomers, saving them from starvation during their first winter on the American continent.

The holiday is deeply cherished as one of the main national milestones, so it has been widely covered in art. The 300Magazine team congratulates all our readers and partners on the coming festivity and uses this moment to recollect the best-known Thanksgiving-inspired pieces of art.

Thanksgiving Day in American Art

The three main art objects that come to an art connoisseur’s mind when discussing Thanksgiving include Jean Leon Gerome Ferris’s 1621 painting, The First Thanksgiving, Jennie Augusta Brownscombe’s 1914 reinterpretation of the event, The First Thanksgiving at Plymouth, and J.L.G. Ferris’s widely known The First Thanksgiving series. Each of these works presents a vivid image of colonial America, with the pilgrims and the Wampanoag people co-existing in harmony.

Indigenous Perspectives and Reinterpretations

While the white American image of Thanksgiving Day used to dominate American art and culture, a modern turn toward the inclusion of diverse perspectives is notable in this field, too. In this regard, works by Indigenous artists gain prominence in the discussion of Thanksgiving mythology, challenging the idyllic image of white people’s coexistence with the Indigenous tribespeople. Kent Monkman, for instance, uses painting to interrogate colonial contact and mythmaking, including Thanksgiving images; and the 1967 painting by Fritz Scholder, Indian with Thanksgiving Turkey, represents a pop-art Expressionist work mocking American stereotypes about Native American identity.

The Atmosphere of Thanksgiving in Still Life

Besides the concrete depiction of Thanksgiving Day’s festivities or imagery of colonial settlers together with the Wampanoag people, many American artists have dwelt on the broader topic of harvest, abundance, and the festive Thanksgiving atmosphere. Some notable still life works that remind us of the Thanksgiving vibe even beyond late November include Severin Roesen’s Fruit and Flowers, American still life paintings by Raphaelle Peale, and Cornucopia by Jan van Huysum.

Each of the art objects discussed above instills the unique feeling of abundance and gratitude, deeply embedded in American culture. We wish you to spend a cozy evening with your family, celebrating the fruits of our ancestors’ daring labor and the start of their glorious way on the American land.