TWO AMERICAN WOLVES

Through the Eyes of a Mexican Gray Wolf, 2019

acrylic on Belgian linen, 60 x 72 in.

The Mexican gray wolf is one of the most endangered subspecies of gray wolf in North America. My connection with wolves has long included the Wolf Conservation Center in New York, whose work is dedicated to wolf conservation, education, and the recovery of critically endangered wolf populations.

The wolf portrayed in Through the Eyes of a Mexican Gray Wolf lived at the Wolf Conservation Center. The reference photograph for the painting was generously provided to me by Rebecca Bose, the Center's curator, as part of my long-standing relationship with the organization and its wolves.

I Was Wild. They Named Me OR4, 2017

acrylic on Belgian linen, 72 x 48 in.

OR4 was the breeding male of Oregon's Imnaha Pack and an important figure in the state's modern wolf recovery. Among his offspring was OR7, later known as Journey, whose extraordinary dispersal into California made him one of the most famous wolves in America.

OR4 was approximately ten years old when he was killed by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife on March 31, 2016, along with his mate OR39 and two yearlings, following a series of livestock depredations.

I painted I Was Wild. They Named Me OR4 after reading Rob Klavins' A Eulogy for OR-4, written on the day OR4 was killed. His story — a wild animal who survived for years while being repeatedly captured, collared, tracked, and caught at the center of the conflict surrounding the return of wolves to the American West — stayed with me and became the reason for this portrait.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Ester Curini is a self-taught American artist based in New York. Her large-scale paintings focus primarily on wildlife, isolating animals against luminous white backgrounds and removing the human presence from the image. Her work explores the individuality and presence of animals and the complex relationship between wildlife and the human world.

Curini's work has been represented and exhibited by galleries including Bernarducci Meisel Gallery in New York, Evoke Contemporary in Santa Fe, and Plus One Gallery in London. Her paintings are held in private and institutional collections, including the Eileen S. Kaminsky Family Foundation and Seven Bridges Foundation.