Overview
Frank Fleming, born in Bear Creek, Alabama, was a renowned sculptor, celebrated for his mastery of porcelain and bronze casting works. Raised on a farm, he developed a deep, lifelong affection for animals. Fleming initially pursued a degree in biology at Florence State College, but an elective art course revealed a different calling. Discovering his skill and passion, he shifted his focus and ultimately earned a BA in art.
Working primarily in porcelain, Fleming hand‑built his sculptures without preliminary sketches, allowing his forms to evolve intuitively. Throughout his career, anthropomorphized animals, human–animal hybrids, and other fantastical organic forms populated his sculptures, sometimes ironic, sometimes whimsical, and sometimes directed at Southern culture. His smooth, unglazed surfaces heighten the uncanny realism of his work, creating a subtle tension with their naturalism paired with inspired whimsical characterization.
For Fleming, nature was a place of calm and happiness. His creatures possess their own meanings and souls, inviting viewers to consider the independent rhythms, relationships, and mysteries of the natural world.
Above:Frank Fleming (American, 1940–2018), Bird in Hand, 1987, glazed porcelain , Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. W. G. Schuetzenduebel, 2023.4
“I will do an animal, and what turns out is sometimes more surprising than I had in mind because it takes on it’s own being. It seems to have a soul and with that, I’m probably saying, that sometimes we forget how much of a role nature plays.“
– Frank Fleming
Organizer
Organized by the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, Montgomery, Alabama.
Exhibition Sponsors
Annual support for exhibitions is made possible by the following sponsors and grantors:
Lead Sponsors and Grantors: Alabama State Council on the Arts, Art Bridges Foundation, Carr, Riggs & Ingram, LLC, Mr. and Mrs. Barrie H. Harmon, Ill, Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama, LLC, Lamar Advertising of Montgomery, Mr. and Mrs. James K. Lowder, Poarch Band of Creek Indians, and Mrs. Helen Till
Sponsors: Mr. Owen Aronov, Mr. and Mrs. Robert F. Runkle, Sabel Steel, The S. Adam Schloss Foundation, Mr. and Mrs. Adolph Weil, III, Laurie J. Weil, D.V.M. and Dr. Tommy Wool, and Ms. Helen Crump Wells
Co-sponsors: Mr. and Mrs. Sam Adams, Alabama Trucking Association, AmeriFirst Bank, Mr. and Mrs. Marvin H. Campbell II, CAPTRUST, Dr. Robert Combs, Crum Family Charitable Foundation, Mrs. Camille Elebash-Hill, Harmon Dennis Bradshaw, Inc., Mrs. Ann Hubbert, Mr. and Mrs. John E. Ives, Mr. and Mrs. L. Daniel Morris, Jr., Mr. and Mrs. Maurice Mussafer, Dr. Alfred J. Newman, Jr., River Bank & Trust, Russell Construction of Alabama, Inc., Ms. Micki Beth Stiller, Mr. and Mrs. Vernon Taylor, and Warren Averett, LLC.
Special thanks to the Alabama State Council on the Arts.
