During the 1830s, the remote and male-dominated outposts of the North American fur trade offered opportunities for social and sexual freedom. Beyond the reach of restrictive social norms, one could often find same-sex camaraderie and companionship. The Scottish aristocrat and adventurer William Drummond Stewart was among those who sought such freedoms in the West, and in 1837 he hired Miller to accompany him on an expedition to the Rocky Mountains. Miller documented the journey in watercolor sketches, which he later converted into finished paintings while living at Stewart’s castle in Scotland.

In this scene, Miller portrays Stewart and several members of his party dozing during a midday rest. Sheltered in a grove of trees, Stewart lies on his side, his head resting on his right hand. To his right is Antoine Clement, Stewart’s lover of French Canadian and Cree descent who was the caravan’s principal hunter.

—Text taken from the Carter Handbook (2023).