Daniel Ray Parker (Amer., b. 1959), "Rites of Autumn", artist-cast bronze sculpture on wooden base, incised signature, title, edition number 16/50, and date, 1991

height 18 in. x width 36 in. x depth 30 in. (including base)

Provenance: Property from the Estate of Robert A. "Bob" Funk Sr. - trailblazing American businessman, philanthropist, and rancher, from his impressive ranch headquarters in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Daniel Ray Parker is a self-taught wildlife sculptor from Kalispell, Montana, whose early artistic influences included legendary Montana artist Charles Marion Russell as well as local artists Ace Powell and Frank Divita. He developed his distinctive realist approach through extensive firsthand study of animals in their natural habitats, emphasizing precise anatomy, posture, proportion, detail, and the distinctive balance and grace of each subject. His work includes highly detailed wildlife sculptures ranging from bears and elk to elephants, and his monumental bronze Yellowstone Legacy, a life-and-a-half-size pair of fighting bull elk, was installed at West Yellowstone’s Grizzly Park in 1997 and described as Montana’s largest bronze sculpture. Parker received the Ralph “Tuffy” Berg Award for Best New Artist at the 1997 Charles M. Russell Art Show, followed by multiple honors in 1998 and 1999, including People’s Choice Best Sculpture and People’s Choice Awards at the Charles M. Russell Art Show and Bennington Center for the Arts, Best Sculpture at the Wild Wings Art Show, the National Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation’s Sculpture Artist of the Year, and the Artists’ Award at Bennington. In 2000, he also received the Viewer’s Favorite Award at the Spirit of the Great Plains exhibition at the Museum of Nebraska Art.