I love horses. I grew up with them, cared for them, rode them, trained them, and taught others to ride and care for them. I feel at a loss when I don’t see one for a while.
They are very large, powerful creatures, whose anatomy is truly magnificent. There is a regal elegance to them and the image of the free mustang running across the western plains evokes the meaning of the wild west.
This head was done using a photograph of Geronimo, taken by Adolph Muhr and dated 1913. The problem with that is Geronimo died on February 17, 1909, so, I used the 1907 date to identify the fact that Geronimo was near the end of his life at the time and showing the effects of a long, hard, battle-filled existence. His hair , though thinning, is still thick for a man in his late seventies, his cheekbones are pronounced and his cheeks hollow. He had a notable wart on his right cheek and an unexplained indentation on his right temple, possibly the remnant of a significant wound earlier in life. This is the visage of a fierce and proud old warrior.
This piece preceded ” Time Being ” pursuing a similar theme. The bronze is mounted on a tapered stack of black marble discs for elevation and contrast.