The Red Fox in Fine Art
Updated: 15 hours ago
Few animals are as curious, or as clever, as the red fox. I have sculpted them more than once over the years, and each time I come away knowing a little more about them. Here I want to share some of what I've learned about the red fox, two of my fox bronzes, and an artist who has inspired me for a long time.
Sculpture Spotlight: Red Fox Artwork
This week we are celebrating foxes!
Stellar Fox
14.75"L x 14.75"W x 21"H
Stellar Fox is a red fox sitting at rest, caught just as it turns its head, with the long sweep of its coat and tail worked into the bronze.
Daydreaming Fox
7"L x 5.5"W x 4"H
Daydreaming Fox is a smaller, quieter piece. The fox is curled into a calm spiral with its head gently tilted, resting but still aware of everything around it. The patina varies from piece to piece, so if you're interested, reach out to the gallery, and we can show you what's currently available.
Getting to Know the Red Fox
The red fox has a long history here. It's believed to have colonized North America in two waves, the first beginning about 300,000 years ago. A female fox is called a vixen, a male is called a dog, and the young are kits. A group of foxes is called a skulk or a leash.
Foxes dig underground dens, where they raise their kits and hide from predators. They are inquisitive, playful animals with remarkable senses. A fox can hear a watch ticking from 40 yards away. They have a wide range of calls, some of which sound a lot like a dog's bark. Whiskers on their legs as well as their faces help them find their way, and vertical pupils, like a cat's, help them see at night.
"It is only when we are no longer fearful that we begin to create." ~ Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775 - 1851)
An Artist Who Inspires Me: J.M.W. Turner
I find a great deal of inspiration in the life and work of Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775–1851), widely considered one of the greatest masters of British landscape and marine painting. His bright colors gave his subjects a luminous, romantic quality that still stops me in my tracks.
Turner had little formal schooling, but he was selling his drawings by the age of 13. The Royal Academy of Arts admitted him in late 1789, and he exhibited there the following year. In 1793, at just 17, he received the "Great Silver Palette" from the Royal Society of Arts for his landscape drawings. His work is often seen as a forerunner of Impressionism, which is how he came to be known as "The Painter of Light."
