Art Critique

The piece I chose to critique is on display at the Denver Art Museum, and it's one you HAVE to see. I say this because it is bright red, and probably over 100 cubic feet in size. this piece is called Fox Games, and it was created by Sandy Skoglund. Upon research the first thing that struck me about Skoglund's art is her masterful use of stark contrast to contribute to your perception of the piece. I was also impressed by how smoothly she blends artistic mediums, such as sculpture and stage design. However the part that I found to be the most creative was how - like other pieces - it make the viewer the subject, but uniquely to this piece you can stand away from it and other people walking through become the subject. while walking through this piece you're almost overwhelmed by the vibrant red which coats everything from the walls and carpet, to the bread rolls and flowers on the table (literally painting the roses red). The shade of the grey foxes which surround you at this point will jump right out at you (you might not even see the lone red fox) - but fear not - because the foxes themselves are quite docile, most wont even take notice of you.

My overall impression of this while I stand inside and look around is that it's like a freeze frame from a cryptic dream. Foxes represent cunning and deception, as well as good survival instincts, and red in design is used to excite, or agitate. According to Global Oneness, dreaming of being by yourself in a restaurant indicates isolation in a crowd, and bread (which is the only food present on the tables) represents the basic needs of survival. Based on this the overall message that I feel Skoglund's 'Fox Games' conveys is: even in civilised society, we all - on some basic level - are just trying to outsmart eachother in order to survive.