Study for -Stallion and Jack Fighting- by John Steuart Curry

Study for -Stallion and Jack Fighting- c. 1932 - 1943

0:00

drawing, pencil

drawing

landscape

figuration

pencil

regionalism

realism

Dimensions: 17 7/8 x 23 13/16 in. (45.4 x 60.48 cm) (sheet)

John Steuart Curry made this drawing, *Study for -Stallion and Jack Fighting-* with graphite on paper, and you can almost feel the raw energy and the intensity of the moment. Looking at this sketch, I imagine Curry circling the page, trying to nail down the dynamism of these horses in conflict. See how the lines are not just describing shapes, but conveying movement? They’re scratchy and urgent, full of pent-up force. I get the sense that Curry’s drawing isn't just about depiction but about capturing the vital spirit of these animals, their muscles straining, their bodies coiling and striking. It’s like he’s channeling something primal, something untamed. Makes you wonder about the connection between physical struggle and artistic expression, doesn't it? How can a simple sketch embody such raw emotion? It's a reminder that art is not just about what we see, but how we feel.

Comments

minneapolisinstituteofart over 1 year ago

⋮

John Steuart Curry was a leading figure among the Regionalists, artists who sought inspiration in rural America as an alternative to the urban centers of Europe. As part of his populist orientation, Curry often reiterated his painted subjects in lithographs printed in large editions and priced for middle-class consumption. In 1932, he painted Stallion and Jack Fighting, in which a powerful glistening horse tangles with a rawboned mule. At some point he decided that this subject would have wide appeal; so he set about reducing and refining the image, as we see in his drawing executed on tracing paper. He started with erasable pencil and then finalized his thoughts with ink. In 1943, he elaborated the image once again, drawing with a greasy crayon on a lithographic stone. The stone was then used to print the image, reversing the composition.