Artwork copyright Fox Spears. Photo courtesy of Washington State Arts Commission, 2021.

Artwork copyright Romson Bustillo. Photo courtesy of Washington State Arts Commission, by Everything Time Studio, 2021.

Full Moon Blanket, 2020

Fox Spears
(American | Karuk, born 1978)

Location: North Hill Elementary, Des Moines

ABOUT THE ARTWORK

Artist Fox Spears (Karuk) created Full Moon Blanket while working overnight during the full moon of October 31, 2020. He notes, "It was spontaneous and unplanned as I was actually making the series of smaller individual full moon vignettes, but they were all pretty wet so I laid them out on a sheet of paper and it turned into this!"

Printmaking has been Fox Spears' most consistent medium during the 2010s.

Monotypes are made by painting directly onto a printing plate, and then transferring that onto paper or another surface. Only one print can be made from the plate.

This artwork is part of a curated collection by Asia Tail for North Hill Elementary, in Des Moines, Western Washington, in July 2021. The local art selection committee wanted art that reflects their diversity, their values as a sustainable green school, and the 5th grade experience of growth, togetherness, and transitions. The artworks show us that everything is connected. Asia Tail notes “Just as people shape the land, the land shapes us. How we treat our plant and animal relatives matters now and for all the generations that come next.”

This artwork was acquired for the State Art Collection in partnership with Highline School District.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Fox Spears (Karuk) reinterprets traditional Karuk basketry designs into prints, paintings, drawings, and sculpture. His compositions reference geometric, organic, and landscape elements. He notes, "All the work I make is a deliberate continuance of Karuk culture. Regardless of my motives, the creation and presence of my art is an inherent act of resistance against colonial assimilation. My art is made with these intentions: to thank and honor my ancestors, to acknowledge and heal historical trauma, and to help build new Indigenous futures." The Karuk are one of the Indigenous peoples of Northwestern California.

Spears was born and grew up in Western Washington. He earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle in 2010. He was based in Seattle until 2022 and now lives in Florida.