Stenciled on paper and wheatpasted in Arlington
Stencils by Stewy wheatpasted in Arlington
LONDON FOX
Stewie
Arlington is home to urban wildlife. However, it is not an easy life for the animals who live in the remnants of wild spaces left in a suburban area, even in a community that has worked hard to retain green spaces. Human development has led to habitat fragmentation and threatens food supply. Wildlife finds and survives in hidden "in-between" spaces wherever it can. When I saw this fox, stenciled on a London wall by UK street artist Stewie, I was inspired to bring it to Arlington. Many foxes are found in urban and suburban neighborhoods in England, doubtless struggling with the same challenges as their American cousins.
Stewie mailed me a stencil on paper and I wheatpasted it with collaborator Lorri Berenberg in this site. To me, it looks as if the Fox is emerging from the "secret" space of this small pedestrian tunnel under the Minuteman Bikeway; cigarettes and broken beer bottles suggest minor illegal behavior that parallels the outlaw life of the fox, surviving on the margins and liminal spaces as long as humans leave it alone. Because for all the people who find it delightful that a fox or fox family has taken up residence in their neighborhood there are many others who believe that foxes are dangerous and should be eliminated.
Stewie added a rabbit to the tube that arrived in the mail, so we put this up as well, not sure whether to root for the hungry fox or the cuddly bunny!