The White Stallion

About this work

Because the horse runs directly at the viewer, the painting works through foreshortening rather than a long side view. The head and chest come first, bright against the dark brown-black ground, and the raised front leg breaks the symmetry just enough to give the moment its forward rush. The pale mane streams back and to the side, so the eye travels from the face along those loose strands and down into the turmoil below. There, clouds of dust swell up around the legs and body, shot through with flakes of gold leaf that seem to have been kicked up by the hooves. The brushwork is loose, as in an oil painting, which keeps the white coat soft and warm rather than stark. Close up the gold flakes glint one by one; at a distance they merge into a single glowing cloud of movement.

Many horses that look white are, strictly speaking, greys. A grey foal is usually born dark, often black, bay or chestnut, and the coat lightens year by year as white hairs replace the coloured ones, until an older grey can look almost pure white. Underneath, the skin stays dark. Truly white horses, with pink skin beneath a white coat from birth, are much rarer and are linked to particular genes. The Lipizzaners of the Spanish Riding School in Vienna are a well-known example of greying: their foals are born dark and usually turn white between about six and ten years of age. The painting leaves the question open, of course. What matters here is how the pale coat glows against the dark and the gold.

For a bold pair, set it beside The Rearing Horse, gold-lit motion facing gold-lit motion, or combine it with Pegasus in Gold for a wall of horses real and mythical. Warm, deep walls show it at its best: chocolate brown, olive, terracotta or a dark sage that echoes the shadowy ground. A walnut or dark bronze frame suits the painterly finish, and a slim cream mat lifts the white coat without making it look cold. Daylight from the side flatters the brushwork, while a spotlight placed too close can flatten the gold. Printed from the 7168 × 10752 px file, it stays sharp to about 60 × 90 cm, which gives the galloping figure real presence. A Frame TV version with a gallery mat is included too.