Foxfire I
1988
Image not available — this artwork is under copyright
View on museum website →Medium
oil on canvas
Dimensions
overall: 203.2 x 188 cm (80 x 74 in.)
Classification
Painting
Department
CMC
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Kenneth S. Hitch
Accession Number
1998.10.1
Art Historical Context
Jacob Kainen’s *Foxfire I* (1988) is a commanding oil-on-canvas painting whose generous scale—more than six feet tall—invites viewers to step close and experience its surface intimately. The traditional medium of oil paint, applied across such a broad expanse, allows for rich layering and luminous depth, qualities that have long made the technique central to Western painting. The evocative title hints at natural wonder: “foxfire” refers to the eerie glow produced by certain fungi in dark woods, suggesting the artist may have sought to capture fleeting light or quiet mystery within the canvas....
About the Artist
Jacob Kainen
Jacob Kainen was born on December 7, 1909, in Waterbury, Connecticut, to Russian immigrant parents who nurtured his cultural interests; his father was an inventor, and his mother instilled a love of music and literature. The family relocated to New York City in 1918, where Kainen immersed himself in art through newspaper clippings and visits to the Metropolitan Museum. After graduating from DeWitt...