"My Little Deer" depicts a mule deer doe nuzzling her fawn in a moment of peace and safety. The sculpture was created by artist and sculptor, Christine Knapp, who resides in the mountains of northern Colorado. Christine and her husband take daily walks where they closely observe the behavior of wildlife.

According to the website of the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, mule deer are found in Wyoming’s western mountains, in low-elevation creek bottoms of eastern Wyoming, and on ranch and farmland throughout the state. Mule deer populations are in decline across western North America due to loss of habitat and chronic wasting disease. The Department has initiated studies to determine the efficacy of alternative strategies to reverse downward trends in mule deer populations.

The donors, Bill and Beth Edwards, first saw My Little Deer at a reception promoting the Bronze Project. They became involved in this legacy project because their grandchildren are now sixth generation Cheyennites. Bill and Beth were touched by the new life and sense of nurture in Christine’s bronze.

The inscription on the plaque for this piece is derived from the well-known song, “Home on the Range.” Beth chose that theme because it reminded her of her mother, Barbara Murray, and grandfather, Chris Bourne, who would sing the song to her and her seven siblings when they were young.

Cheyenne is truly home on the range where the deer and the antelope play. The Edwards family hopes the bronze will inspire present and future visitors to reminisce about their own personal memories of wildlife in Wyoming and elsewhere. Christine is grateful she has been included with the artists featured in Cheyenne’s Bronze Project. She hopes her bronze will convey a sense of nature’s balance, harmony, and infinite abundance.

To learn more about the Capitol Avenue Bronze Project, visit this link . For more information about each artist, sponsoring a bronze, or becoming a donor/supporter at any level, please contact Harvey Deselms at Deselms Fine Art, located at 303 E. 17th Street Cheyenne. Email is [email protected] or call at 307 432 0606