Horse, Church, Cheverie, oil on canvas, 48" x 48", private collection

My first contact with the horse as a subject in painting was as a kid when I came across a George Stubbs reproduction of a lion attacking a horse; a viscous attack on the nature of spirit. Later, Da Vinci's Battle of Anghiari studies/drawings caught my attention in a monograph on his life's work. Subsequently, as an adult at art college, the riderless horse that made Kennedy's funeral at Arlington Cemetery so dramatic, was once discussed in class by John Gould - we were riveted by the historical account he proffered to us.
The church in Cheverie is in reality down the road from this location. The horse was a Grey Hanoverian that turned white as it aged. Cheverie speaks for itself.

Steven Rhude, Wolfville, NS.

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