With less than 200 days to go until the FEI World Equestrian Games, excitement has begun to build within the Arts community of Lexington and the Bluegrass. Plans are underway for exhibitions and shows featuring local and national talent in a variety of venues. From the Kentucky Horse Park to the streets of Lexington, equestrian art will be a feature of the World Equestrian Games. This makes sense, considering that horses have been an inspiration to artists since Prehistoric peoples were making art in caves. Here in horse country, artists are staying true to their cave-drawing forebearers. As the FEI World Equestrian Games draw near, equestrian art will be on display in many local galleries.
One art exhibit of 2010 will be unveiled at an evening reception on April 17 at the Lexington History Museum. “A Salute to the World Equestrian Games” the 2010 Invitational of the American Academy of Equine Art will be showcasing original art from both local and national artists alike. The Academy’s call to artists invited submissions of all types which will be displayed beginning April 17 through November 1. The American Academy of Equine Art was founded in 1980 by a group of artists famed for their work with equine subjects. The organization, though based in Lexington, presents exhibits all over the United States. The Academy sponsors an Artist in Residence and workshops at the Kentucky Horse Park each year. 2010 is of particular importance for this organization that prides itself on the appreciation of fine arts as a prominent part of fine arts in America.
Museum officials cite this exhibit as a way to fuse important facets of Lexington: the arts, culture, and history. “With so many creative people in Lexington and the Bluegrass Region, we feel this is a great way to highlight their talents. Horses have been significant to the history of Lexington and an exhibit of equine art housed at a museum which showcases the history of Lexington is a perfect way to pay homage to the FEI World Equestrian Games.” Admission to the exhibit is free and the Lexington History Museum is open to the public seven days a week 12-4 p.m. with extended hours on Saturdays from 10-4 p.m. For more information about the exhibit visit the museum’s website www.lexingtonhistorymuseum.org or call 859-254-0530.
“A Gift from the Desert: The Art, History and Culture of the Arabian Horse” is an International blockbuster exhibit which will be opening at the International Museum of the Horse located at the Kentucky Horse Park, the host to the FEI World Equestrian Games. The exhibit, presented by the Saudi Arabian Equestrian Federation, will be open May 29-October 15 and will include 400 artifacts and works of art from twenty-five museums and private lenders including the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the British Museum, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Oxford University, American Museum of Natural History, among others. The priceless works of art and artifacts are expected to be popular with equine enthusiasts and will be the cultural heart of the games for thousands of visitors to the Kentucky Horse Park.
The artifacts which make up “A Gift from the Desert” are very rare and this exhibition is the first time they have been displayed together. Among the priceless objects are the Standard of Ur (circa 2,600 BCE), the first depiction of equine driving, and the Kikkuli tablet, the world's earliest known treatise on horse care and training from the Hittite civilization. The exhibit will also feature a collection of Orientalist paintings by Delacroix, Schreyer and Fromentin, a large selection of the 19th century equestrian works of Polish painter Juliusz Kossak, and original documents relating to his historic importation of horses. These span thousands of years of artistry and enthusiasm in the equestrian arts.
John Nicholson, executive director of the Kentucky Horse Park, observed, "Throughout history, horses have had a unique ability to dismantle the walls that exist between people and nations, particularly when those horses are possessed of extraordinary beauty, as are Arabians. Those who love and admire horses share a deep connection with each other regardless of age, class, race or religion. So we are very proud that the Kentucky Horse Park has developed this exhibition as a way to honor and celebrate the Arabian horse." This will be the third major exhibition that the Smithsonian affiliate has hosted and will close at the conclusion of the World Equestrian Games.
Tickets are $21 for adults and $11 for children. For information on the exhibition or the museum, contact the International Museum of the Horse, 859-259-4232 or go to www.agiftfromthedesert.com. For group tour information, contact Ali Mihankhah, 859-259-4225 or [email protected].
Lexington, the horse capital of the world, will be brimming with equestrian art this year. Sculpture, painting, public murals, and more will be a part of the Kentucky experience of the FEI World Equestrian Games.
