Spirited Horse

American School

Spirited Horse
Unsigned, Second quarter nineteenth century
Steel pen drawing, brown and black ink, gold paint on paper
19″ x 21”, 22 ¾” x 25” (frame)
Over-all in great condition, minor toning to paper. In a period-19th c. frame.
Provenance: Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Peter Tillou, Litchfield, Connecticut, thence by descent.
Illustrated: Nineteenth-Century Folk Painting: Our Spirited National Heritage, Works of Art from the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Peter Tillou (The William Benton Museum of Art, 1973), pl. 68.
Exhibited: The William Benton Museum of Art, The University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut, 1973; The New York State Historical Association, Cooperstown, New York, 1973; Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Collection, Williamsburg, Virginia, 1974.
This concise and well-rendered calligraphy drawing depicts a spirited Appaloosa, commonly known as the “Spotted Horse,” caparisoned in horse hair bridle and reins. Once the staple breed of the wild west, the Appaloosa is revered for its rich Spanish-Colonial history, unique coat patterns and versatility.
For a similar work, attributed to H. G. Cuddeback, see American Folk Paintings: From the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Center (Little, Brown and Company, Boston, 1988), pl. 298, pg. 348.

Price: $9,500