Walrus by Scott Listfield
Fine-art Giclée print on Italian cold-press watercolor paper
20 x 20 Inches
Limited Edition of 75
Limited Edition of 75
Signed & numbered
Printed with ♥ by Paragon Press
Please allow 6-8 weeks for delivery
"Walrus" by Scott Listfield shines a spotlight on the dangers of climate change and, its impact on species habitats, such as that of the walrus. Home to the waters of the Arctic and Subarctic, the walrus (
Odobenus rosmarus) is now classified as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. In past centuries, their populations were overexploited for the trade of walrus tusks, however, with walrus hunts outlawed (except for limited indigenous exemptions), the global climate crisis now represents its greatest threat. Thinning pack ice and consequential habitat loss have the future of walruses dangling in uncertainty.
Artist Statement
"
After many years of living in Boston, I recently relocated to Los Angeles. When I first got into town, I was staying in a very temporary housing situation near Hollywood. And it felt temporary. Everything felt temporary. I felt unmoored for the first time in a while, I had no place I could really call home, and it was unsettling. Everywhere I went I felt like the astronaut in my paintings, exploring a world that seemed familiar but which I didn't totally understand.
I had left Boston because I was sick of shoveling snow. I mean, there was a lot more to it than that, but I did really hate it. The winters had become increasingly intolerable. Whether that was a short term trend or part of a larger environmental shift, I couldn't say. I landed in Los Angeles in October and the mountains above Malibu were on fire. The mountains here are beautiful. The ones back home are much smaller, although they burn less frequently, I guess. I had moved very far from home, and for a little while, I felt like I was just one more person pushing my way outwards, filling up the available space.
The winters will probably keep getting worse, and the fires will too. I wonder what will happen when they stop getting worse. Will we still be around? How many animals will be left? Maybe the winters in Los Angeles will be more like Boston, or maybe Boston will be more like Los Angeles. I hope the Walrus will have some place they can call home. Maybe it'll be here in LA. The mountains here are beautiful."
- Scott Listfield -
Artist Bio
Scott Listfield is known for his paintings featuring a lone exploratory astronaut lost in a landscape cluttered with pop culture icons, corporate logos, and tongue-in-cheek science fiction references. Scott grew up in Boston, MA and studied art at Dartmouth College. After some time spent living abroad, Scott returned to America and, shortly before the real life, non-movie version of the year 2001, began painting astronauts and, sometimes, dinosaurs.
Scott has been profiled in Juxtapoz, Wired Magazine, the Boston Globe, New American Paintings, and on at least one local television station. He has exhibited his work in Los Angeles, London, Chicago, New York, San Francisco, Miami, Montreal, Boston, and many other nice places.
The Story Behind
Walrus
Scott Listfield
About the Artist
Scott Listfield
