Geococcyx Californianus   1998 
Acrylic on canvas  41 x 33”

Unique amongst species, the Geococcyx californianus, or roadrunner has had its reputation almost completely taken over by popular culture.
   Neither mice nor rabbits nor ducks nor horses are so tightly tied to the image created for them by popular culture.  (Did you immediately think of Mickey Mouse, Bugs Bunny, Donald Duck or Mr. Ed?) 
   I’ve put the mostly grey roadrunner in the most cartoonish surroundings I could create, with crazy colors and a fish-eye view, reminiscent of Looney Tunes’ concentric circles.  (Remember Porky Pig waving out from the middle?)  The wind is blowing trash through the landscape, a wrapper of some product from the ACME company has landed on the bird, partially obscuring it.  ACME is, of course, the company that created all of the products used by Wile E. Coyote in his attempts to capture roadrunner.
   On the barbed-wire fence, a piece of day-glo surveyor’s tape blows in the wind.  Just another visible manifestation of mankind’s unending attempts to take over nature.