Bear Market

By Artist Lisa Rae Winant.
24 x 11 / oil on panel
Used by permission of the Artist


Warning!Warning!Warning! Rabid bear has just escaped the UNH zoo. Please be aware that this giant grizzly is armed with razor sharp claws and teeth. Arthur Lancaster listened to the newcast as he drank his morning coffee and paid little attention to it. As he left the house Arthur thought to himself that what are the chances that he is going to run into a giant, rabid, Grizzly bear. As he strolled through the park on his way to the office he was shocked to see the Grizzly that was mentioned on the news. The bear was tearing down branches from a nearby tree. Art was frozen with fear and heard on the Discovery channel that if he ever encountered a bear he should just stay still and leave the bear alone. The Grizzly noticed the frozen man and made his way towards him. Art remained frozen as the bear began to open his mouth right in front of him. To Art's surprise he did not hear a loud growl or a terrifying grunt, but a pleasant voice coming from the bear. "Hello sir, I was wondering if you could spare some change for bus fare." Still frozen with amazement, but no longer horror Art mindlessly reached in his pocket and handed the bear a five dollar bill. "Thank you sir, I need to get out of this crazy city and head home to Alaska. You're really helping me out." It took Art a few minutes to recover from his amazement and as he turned towards the direction that the huge bear left the park he saw the bear waving to him out the window of a city bus. Weird didn't quite cover the events that just took place. Arthur Lancaster, a man who helps the animal population.