This is the sixth in a seven-part series of Southwestern history murals that the Gallup public schools commissioned J. R. Willis to paint through the Public Works of Art Project between 1935 and 1936—and that still hang in the Gallup High School library.
Willis dedicated the first five murals in his series to roughly 100 years of Spanish colonization of the Southwest in the 16th century. With this mural, he fast-forwards about 250 years to the mid-1800s and the end of the Mexican-American War (skipping over 200 years of Spanish colonial administration, the Pueblo Revolt, and Mexican Independence in the process).
This mural draws on stereotyped narratives of western expansion and American progress. A crew of “pioneers” strides directly toward the viewer, heralding a new world order. Willis seems well aware of his intended audience, encouraging local student-viewers to identify with the image by setting the scene in Gallup—the iconic landmarks of Pyramid Rock and Church Rock are clearly visible in the background.
