Around the Bend
Artist
Stephen Fox
(American)
Date1982
MediumOil on canvas
Dimensions24 × 28 1/2 in. (61 × 72.4 cm)
ClassificationsPainting
Object numberUAC2712
DescriptionMade in 1982, Around the Bend shows a scene of a curved road at night, which disappears into a distance lit up by the golden glow of street lamps. Stephen Fox’s style has been described as photorealistic and that certainly shows here in the leaves on the trees, as wella s in the shadows of the grass blades. The road that moves from the bottom left corner of the painting up to the right center gives the otherwise still painting a sense of movement and dynamism, accentuated by the way the streetlights poke out around the trees.This modern landscape captures the tension between movement and stillness that can be experienced by standing in an empty road, especially late at night. Long shadows and the realistic style emphasize this tension as well by guiding one’s eye deeper into the painting and keeping it there. One especially interesting touch is the purple-red haze that can be seen along the background of the piece where the land and sky meet. This haze brightens the background in a way that helps maintain Fox’s skillful balance between light and dark as well as depict either the moments just before dawn or the light pollution so common in developed areas like the one he is depicting.
Stephen Fox is a New York artist who works often in the suburbs of the major city. He got his BFA in painting and printmaking from Virginia Commonwealth University in 1980. He exhibited all through the 80’s and 90’s around the Baltimore area, and has even had his work featured in the personal collections of J. J. Abrams and Whoopi Goldberg.
Written by Alex Heath
