2007 MASTERS OF FOXHOUNDS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA
TRAVELING ART EXHIBITION
Art Will Commemorate Our Centennial

            The Masters of Foxhounds Association of America will celebrate its Centennial in 2007 by teaming with talented artists from around the Continent. There are 170 Member Hunts that will have the opportunity to invite artists to capture the magic of Foxhunting as it exists today in places that range from California to Georgia, Toronto to Palm Beach. Though adherence to tradition binds these clubs together, they share an unbelievable diversity in country, climate, hounds, horses and people.

            Our vision is to capture the character of each place with all of its beauty. For example, the first light of dawn is the magical moment when all of nature comes alive. This moment which is so filled with anticipation has a different face in the desert as opposed to a field with a nearby oak tree towering over excited hunters mounted on horses steaming in the sunrise.


The rolling hills of California with their Royos are such a wondrous difference from the stony cliffs along the Appalachian watershed. Artists will love to apply their talents capturing motion, light, horses, hounds, and people in these fabulous settings.
Fox hunters, not only have a knack for finding the most beautiful places to pursue their sport, they also are real characters that capture the artist’s eye.  This individuality in people, animal, and place is what we want to capture.

            To achieve this lofty goal, we have asked Cross Gate Gallery, a premier sporting art gallery in the United States, to bring together artists and hunts. Artists will contact hunts or hunts will contact specific artists to organize their visit to a hunt where they will be given the opportunity to see and paint. The Artists will be pre approved by Cross Gate Gallery to participate in the effort to insure that we have the finest quality work for the Centennial celebration.

            Cross Gate will then gather all of the artists’ paintings, which we anticipate to be over 200 in number. These works will be taken on tour across North America to be sold at one of 12 different cities, one of which should be near you. We are presently putting together this tour which will start in New York at the Centennial Ball in late January 2007.  The money raised from the sales will be split by the artists, Cross Gate Gallery, and The MFHA Foundation. The MFHA Foundation will use the money to perpetuate hunting.

• We want our membership, which is defined as any Subscribing Member, to invite an artist to come paint any scene they like associated with their hunt. This should be coordinated with the Masters to assure availability if the subject involves hounds, hunt country owned by others, and other people. A list of the artists is included in this article with a contact number or email address. Time is of the essence, as in all things, as the seasons are so important to capture. Places look different with snow blanketing the hillsides versus spring flowers. Trees bare verses trees covered with foliage.

• We want the Subscribing Members to come to one of the venues on the art tour to buy what has been produced by these hand picked artists. If that painting is of you and your family, so much the better, but the paintings produced will be sold on the tour. Should someone want to commission a painting, that would not be part of this effort.

Greg Ladd, owner of Cross Gate Gallery, has the following to say.

The Cross Gate Gallery is thrilled to have the opportunity to organize the MFHA’s Centennial Anniversary traveling art exhibition. The exhibition Celebrating 100 years of Foxhunting in North America will open in New York City in January of 2007 with the annual Hunt Ball. It will spend the year traveling all across North America and will include 12 major exhibitions from the East coast to the West including Canada.

This selling exhibition will incorporate the top ‘Sporting’ painters and sculptors working today, capturing for our children the passion of American Foxhunting as we live it in the early 21st century. Proceeds will be split between the artists, Cross Gate Gallery, and the MFHA.

We are soliciting participation by the subscribing membership:

Centennial Sculpture. Sculptor Alexa King has produced a beautiful bronze of a Running Hound that will be given to ‘Centennial Patrons’ of the MFHA. These Patrons will receive a package of benefits that will not only include this fabulous work but will also receive ball tickets for New York, passes for the Performance Trials, Hunter Competitions, and a gift bag of Centennial goodies.

Centennial Painting. An ‘Official Centennial Painting,’ from which we will make prints, will be auctioned at the annual Hunt Ball in New York.  This painting will be chosen from the works of all the artists.

Open Your Hunts. We are hearing from artists all across North America who would like to capture ideas to be expressed in their work. When we hear from artists in your area, we hope that you will open your hunts and allow these artists to explore the intricacies of ‘Foxhunting’ with you.

Encourage Artists. If you know of quality painters and sculptors who would like to participate, please have them contact the Cross Gate Gallery and we will forward them pertinent information. We have a brochure that explains the specifics of artists’ participation in the traveling Centennial exhibition.

Invite Artists. We encourage you to invite our group of artists to come to your individual hunts and preserve for posterity ‘your passion’ during this Centennial year. The list of artists that are excited about participating in this historic event is growing daily. A list of artists that have contacted us appears on our website www.crossgategallery.com and will soon appear on the official website of the MFHA, www.MFHA.com.

If you prefer, you can write to us and we will forward you a list.

MFHA Centennial Art Exhibition
c/o Greg Ladd - Cross Gate Gallery
509 East Main Street
Lexington, Kentucky 40508

            We are excited about this huge effort to capture our way of life through art.
Be a part of it and enjoy the fruits of your efforts by:

• Enjoying art that you helped create.
• Raising money to perpetuate Foxhunting