Powerful, beautiful, and symbolic, horses have been a popular subject since the very beginnings of art. We invited artists to share their own equine imagery and their inspiration.
Horses’ intrinsic qualities of gentleness and wildness inspire me to create eloquent images by showing grace in the small details, beauty in the elegant lines of their bodies and the fierce power they often display.
My artwork grows out of and reflects my passion for horses, and my appreciation of their strength and beauty as living, breathing art.
I paint contemporary realism, focusing on traditional Western art, and magical realism, uniquely rooted in the southwest culture. I use the paintbrush and my imagination to tell a story or spark inquiry and appreciation of nature’s boundless beauty.
The horse is moving sculpture. I watch for opportunities to make a portrait of these animals. As they look toward me, I embrace their history of service to agriculture, war, and transportation.
From the start of my career I was drawn to painting the horse. They symbolize the wildness within each of us as we conform to certain roles in society yet yearn to be another.
Living in the city didn’t permit me to realize my childhood dream of owning a horse. However, this herd of magnificent creatures inspired me to do this oil to capture their majestic beauty in motion.
For me photography is to illicit and capture emotions. Here the stallion gently kisses the mare with his eyes closed breathing in her scent, awaiting her reply to his advance. I choose the black and white medium as it focuses the attention to their touching noses and the emotion between them.
I don’t paint horses; I paint the way they make me feel. There is more to a horse than just a “picture” of him; there is a mythology, a symbolism, an ancient connection we can trace. Horses are Big energy, and that is what I paint.
For me, the horse represents one of mother nature’s best works of art. They are a balance of strength and gentleness, freedom with service, mystery and understanding with a spirit that touches your soul.
In painting horses, I strive to honor not only their beauty, but what they truly are; an iconic element of our collective unconscious, spiritual bond with nature, and our history.
I’ve always been fascinated by the bond between humans and horses, and your writing brought it to life in a way that felt so intimate and personal. If I were to offer any suggestions for future posts, I’d say to consider including more examples of contemporary artists who are continuing this tradition of portraying horses in art. It could be interesting to see how modern artists interpret and portray these animals in their work.