Robin Hanes

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Artist Statement

These paintings were a pleasure to work on. I love these ordinary creatures that have no outright purpose in our human orientation. I researched each animal, as well as employing Bill Emory’s photographs and some of my own. My borders include real, visual information about roadscapes, cars and sometimes stories about my experiences with the animals. My borders are paintings themselves. To me, they illustrate how much dimension exists peripherally.
           
When I returned to painting, after a bad bicycle accident, I wanted to honor the animals that live with the dangers of our automotive landscape. The eastern US is now a tight network of pavement; there is not much space for undomesticated life. I walk nearby roads watching, up close, the woods and small worlds that we so often whiz by. All of us have seen most of these animals. All of us have at least injured a wild creature while driving. They have not evolved to comprehend our speeding vehicles. Most recognize the danger, but don’t grasp the timing required to safely cross the road.
           
My son Emmett did a week’s internship at the NC Zoo’s Valerie H. Schindler Wildlife Rehabilitation Center for credit at his school. I came along and found that we have a wonderful resource in this state, where vets and trained caretakers attend to injured wildlife. Gallery C and I decided to offer a print whose proceeds would benefit this fine group.