Pippin began The Getaway as a daytime scene with a blue sky, red barns, and a fox standing still in the snow. His inspiration to transform the work into a nighttime setting may have come from seeing Winslow Homer’s Fox Hunt at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia. In Homer’s painting, the fox is pursued by crows and appears to be running for its life. In Pippin’s snowy portrayal, the fox has captured a bird and escapes in the moonlight.
Born in West Chester, Pennsylvania, Horace Pippin (American, 1888–1946) held many jobs before he became an artist, including working on a farm, in an iron mill, and for a moving company. He enlisted in the Army in 1917, and fought in World War I in France. He served in the 369th Infantry, a famous African American regiment nicknamed the Harlem Hellfighters. After being shot in his right shoulder, Pippin returned home and taught himself to paint. He used his left hand to guide his impaired right hand, which held the paintbrush. He painted his own experiences, often taking inspiration from his childhood memories, his community, and the Bible. He said, “Pictures just come to my mind and I tell my heart to go ahead.”
Source: Philadelphia Museum of Art