signed, dated 1998 and numbered 2/5 on the lower right base
21 × 26 × 3.5 in (53.3 × 66.0 × 8.9 cm) (overall)
Auction Estimate:$8,000 - $12,000
Sale date:May 31, 2016
Price Realized
$13,800
(including Buyer's Premium)
Provenance
Private Collection, Calgary
Literature
Terence Heath, “Joe Fafard”, National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, 2007, pages 133-36
Terence Heath points to Fafard's view of his subject, the cow existing not just as “part of farm life but also of the very basis of a settled society that could build cities and roads, pursue fixed economic and social programs and project a planned, sustainable life for large groups of people. The history and fate of the domesticated animal and the human are interlinked at the deepest of levels of survival and symbiotic development.” This symbiotic relationship and respect for the animals is evident even through Fafard's practice of naming many of the cows he creates, providing an individual identity and place all subjects. “Each animal has a presence; there are no generic animals; even the ones called simply Ayrshire are individuals.”
This bronze was produced in an edition of 5.