[1] He was a member of the Fort Worth Circle, a cohort of artists often credited with bringing modern art to Texas and the firsts to steer away from the then dominating regional aesthetic.
[2] In 1947, Fearing enrolled at Columbia University to pursue his Master’s degree, owing to the funding efforts of Sam Cantey, a prominent patron of the Fort Worth Circle.
[2] In 1943, he left his teaching position to receive volunteer defense industry training during World War II, and moved to Fort Worth to work as a draftsman-in-training for Consolidated Vultee Aircraft.
[6] During Fearing’s undergraduate studies, his work largely subscribed to the then ubiquitous regionalist style in the American South which can be seen in his piece, The Pink Pigs (1940).
[3] Spirituality, a salient theme in many of his paintings, often manifested as depictions of and references to Biblical characters and saints, Judeo-Christian monks, and figures from Asian cultures like Shree Bhagwan Rajneesh, under whom he studied.
[7] While figures in his works typically were portrayed in repose or suggested slow movement, some pieces like The Jitterbuggers (1939) and The Lifters (1946) center human dynamism and form.
[3] As a nod to revering all life, animals occupied much of his oeuvre, especially large African mammals including giraffes, lions, rhinoceros, zebras, and okapis, often set in mystical backgrounds.