Racehorse Artists

~Famous Racehorse Artists and Paintings~ Part 1

Posted by Shya Beth on

Whistlejacket ~ By George Stubbs

Since this is the week of the Belmont Stakes, and we may have a Triple Crown Winner (AND of curse, I just got my new OTTB!) I decided to feature some of my favorite horse racing paintings and artists!  Also, for part 2 this Friday, I will be featuring some more racing artists that are still living today.

Hope you all will enjoy this post~

 Shya

 

 

George Stubbs~

1724-1806

Lived in: Liverpool, England

George Stubbs is one of my favorite horse artists! He is best known for his painting of Whistlejacket (photo shown above). It was  painted in 1762, three years after he won his most victorious race. It was a four mile race in 1759. Whistlejacket was ten years old! The painting it is about 9′ 1/2 ‘ tall by 8’ feet wide and it hangs in the National Gallery of Art in London.

This is George Stubbs book “The Anatomy Of The Horse”. He had help dissecting horse carcasses  from his partner, Mary Spencer, his devoted companion until death and supposedly his common-law wife, the mother of his son, George Townley Stubbs.  They would hoist the carcasses into lifelike positions in  tackle by his own design . I have a copy of this book and I would recommend it to anyone interested in art and learning the anatomy of horses. He goes into such detail, it is amazing!

 

The Anatomy of the Horse Stubbs, George 1 of 1

Cover of The ” Anatomy Of The Horse”

 

 

Cherhill Chalk Horse (Cherhill, England)

* Lord Lansdowne, the owner of the land that this chalk horse is on,  commissioned Dr. Christopher Alsop to design and carve it. Both off these men were friends of Georges Stubbs and it has been thought that this horse may have been designed by  Stubbs himself. If you look closely, it does look like his style. I will be doing an other post on Chalk Horses soon! Keep on the lookout!!

 

 

 

Here are more racehorse paintings by George Stubbs~

'Pumpkin'

“Pumpkin” by George Stubbs. Painted in 1794~

 

A Jockey (in the Duke of Grafton's colours?) with a Chestnut Racehorse and a Pomeranian Dog in a Park

A Jockey with a Chestnut Racehorse and a Pomeranian Dog in a Park by George Stubbs. Early 19th Century~

 

Horse Attacked by a Lion

“Horse Attacked By Lion” George Stubbs~

 

 

 Edgar Degas
1834-1917
 Paris, France

“Racehorses In Front Of The Stands” by Edgar Degas ~

All though half of Edgar Degas’s work was on ballet dancers, he is also well known for his racehorse paintings. I really like his movement and his use of colors!

 

                           “Horseracing, The Training ”  by Edgar Degas ~
                                         “The false start”  by Edgar Degas ~

 

John Skeaping

1901-1980
Essex , England & France (For a short time)
 He found his ideal subject  in the Thoroughbred, with all it’s grace and power.  He had an exceptional ability to give an impression  of speed and movement to his paintings . He was a sculptor and a painter and has done a life size sculpture of  Secretariat, which stood at the Belmont Race Track and is now at the National Museum of Racing in Saratoga ,NY. He did  many bronzes other race horses as well.
There are three things that John Skeapling  and I have in common:
 Educated at home,
Early start in art training,
Love Thoroughbreds! He rode regularly as an amateur steeplechase jockey-
and I’m training my three year old OTTB!
A great power of observation is necessary ,
and a sense of form. The artist must know
exactly what the shape of things is, and
he must have the  technique to be able to
reproduce it when necessary. The more
an artist knows about animals from
every angle the better particularly from
handling them , understanding their ways
and behavior. Above all,  he must be
devoted to them-not sentimentally bestowing
upon them human intelligence an attributes,
but for loving then for who they are: stupid,
cunning, strong, fierce, affectionate or
whatever they maybe.
                                John Skeapling
                           “How To Draw Horses”
                                    ” Horse Race”    John Skeapling 
                                               “Going down to the start”   John Skeapling 
 

   Secretariat statue **(see link below) by  John Skeapling 

 

 

Additional Web Sites:
royalacademy.org.uk
www.racingmuseum.org

One Comment Add yours

  1. Pingback: ~Queen Of England Unveils Frankel Statue on Royal Ascot 2015 Opening Day~ | The Flying Shetlands

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