Popeye is a horse with a special story. When Annie contacted me about a portrait she wanted to portray her Dobermans, but we ended up doing her Standardbred horse, Popeye. Every message Annie sent me was dripping with love for this horse. Here is what she told me about Popeye:
“This boy is very special! He was born with his left eye blind, you would never know it. He is an amazing race horse with a heart that won’t quit. Yet when he is with me or hears my voice is as gentle as a kitten. He has an amazing sire and dam and would have gone for a lot of money at the sire stake sales but because of his eye they wouldn’t take him, so he went to a lease sale and my brother and I were able to get him! He owns my heart and by the way has beat some of those sire stake horses.”
Popeye is a Standardbred harness racer. The Standardbred is an American horse breed known for its ability in harness racing.
Portrait of “Popeye” for Annie W.
Prismacolor pencil on “Steel blue” Canson Mi-Teintes paper
12 x 14 inches
I have loved horses all my life but I rarely get a chance to portray them, since I’m so well known for dog portraits. I really enjoyed capturing the beauty of Popeye.
You can see more horse portraits in my HORSES Gallery, including a winning show horse, and a cutting horse (working cow horse).
