The secret gallery’s blog

“Horses in the Mist” oil on canvas                                 Marianne Potterton 2008

I painted this oil on canvas several months ago. It has been through many stages and I struggled with it as it became muddy and confused. In the early stages of its life our children painted it with me as we built up a variety of marks together. One of the things that I like best about this painting is the contrast of the definite shape of the horse with the loose marks that could be flowers or could be something else. It is hard to see something being one way without having its opposite to contrast with it.

I have been drawing and painting horses since I can remember, as have many people since cave paintings. There is something almost timeless about horses. Artists have used them in many different ways in their work. Joseph Beuys used real horses. Jack Yeats painted many horses, I remember sitting in front of one of his paintings in the Hugh Lane Gallery in Dublin and crying, it was so full of feeling. It was probably nearly 20 years ago and I still remember it well! Paintings and other visual art can look great in reproduction, but their is nothing like sitting right in front of one you love!