This is a small (the base is 8″ x 8″) bronze of a kodiac bear by one of this country’s foremost animal artists (or “animaliers”), Alexander Phimister Proctor (1860-1950).
Proctor at 1893 Chicago World’s Fair
“I am eternally obsessed,” Proctor said, “with two deep desires—one, to spend as much time as possible in the wilderness, and the other, to accomplish something worthwhile in art.” Growing up in the West, he paired his great love of hunting in the Rockies with artistic ambition leading him to study at two academies in Paris. His prolific career earned him numerous commissions for prominent public statues, some of which you may have seen (more at bottom of post).
This piece gave me a chance to do one of my favorite decorative techniques—chamfering. The frame is quartersawn white oak with Dark Medieval Oak stain.
Statues by Proctor—
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- “Theodore Roosevelt, Rough Rider,” Portland, OR
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- William Tecumseh Sherman, NYC (horse by Proctor)
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- Mustangs, Univ. of Texas, Austin
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- “Prouling Panther”
Learn more about the artist at the Alexander Phimister Proctor Foundation website…
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