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"Mickey Walker" Boxing Bronze by Joseph Brown
It's not surprising that the only fighter specifically lionized in Joe Brown's generic sculptures of boxers molded on the figures of mythic Greek and Roman warriors was Mickey Walker. "The Toy Bulldog," as Walker was known, had good enough skills but it was the fact that Walker had the heart of 10 men that made him the beau ideal of Brown's thematic objective of presenting prizefighters as the essence of the godly warriors' bold, courageous and even tragic qualities. The undersized Walker fought everyone and anyone with equal vigor, pounding much bigger men into submission en route to winning the welterweight crown in 1922 and the middleweight crown in '26 that he held until '31. He even went for the light-heavyweight title, losing decisions to Tommy Loughran and Maxie Rosenbloom. Clearly Walker had all the facets Brown revered, and they all are implicit in the bronze, which he crafted in 1935 when Walker was still active. He is shown with his eyes fixed in concentration, his right glove up, left cocked at his side and ready to spring, sinewy calf and thigh muscles tensed. The "noir" dark brown figure is alloyed so that there are areas of lighter coloring, perhaps to highlight that a fighter is the sum of many parts, and not one-dimensional. Figure stands 5 1/2 x 2 1/2 x 9" and mounted on a metal base atop a larger silver base measuring 7 3/4 x 4 1/2 x 2. Brown's name is engraved on the upper base. Condition of the piece is EX-NRMT with mild nicking and soiling of the silver base. Nothing less than stunning.
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