Way back when…..among the cranberry bogs, woods and ponds of Rochester, Massachusetts where Charles Denault Sr. grew up, sightings of whitetail deer were a rare occurrence. They were there, although few in numbers and always something special to see. Little did he know that one day, whitetail deer would be so important in his life.
Growing up, drawing and dabbling was a definite preoccupation and a source of irritation for his mother, as he was forever decorating and redecorating my bedroom walls with his rendition of indians, animals and airplanes. It appears as he looked back in time, his creativity was an every day happening and not an unusual occurrence.
Throughout his life, including a career in the United States Air Force, wildlife art would rear its head many times. While stationed in Paris, France, he first realized that the animal he had pursued through field and forest was not being illustrated accurately. Artists had take license to create whitetails as they would a mythical animal, which they then passed on as a whitetail deer. Many years would pass including a tour in Vietnam before he would have the opportunity to become involved full time with wildlife art and the whitetail deer.
As an Air Force illustrator/supervisor, (the equivalent of a civilian art director) he slowly began the transition into the world of wildlife art, a process that took nearly 10 years. Chuck’s first series of wildlife art was watercolor, depicting various animals, which he promptly traded for a radio for his airplane. In the 1970’s he decided to specialize in whitetail deer, determined to portray them, aesthetically and anatomically correct, not as they have been portrayed by most artists in the past.
To accomplish this, he began raising whitetail deer in the late 1970’s. This provided Chuck with invaluable insight and knowledge which even today few artists possess. Each day provided something new and different. After completing over 450 paintings of whitetail, he had found that the learning process continues to his passing.
Chuck’s paintings are based upon his bow hunting experiences and supported by endless hours of field research each year. Depicted are situations, he was sure, many other hunters have experienced. To help authenticate his paintings, “racks” or antlers from actual deer are used along with body references of real animals. Backgrounds are spontaneous creations, frequently evolving from places Chuck has visited.
The legacy of Chuck’s paintings are dedicated to all. As he watched the relentless destruction of our forests, creatures and habitat, he could not help but think, that in the future, his paintings, may be for many, the only way that they may touch the face of the past and see with wonderment, what once was.
Chuck Denault Sr. 