-Prancing Horse on Oval Base- still bank c. 1920s

Curator: Our next piece is a small, cast metal sculpture entitled “Prancing Horse on Oval Base - still bank,” dating back to the 1920s. The attribution suggests it comes from the Hubley Manufacturing Company, and it currently resides here at the Minneapolis Institute of Art. Editor: Oh, I’m immediately struck by its sense of contained power! The rearing horse, frozen in a dramatic pose, but miniaturized, almost domesticated by that solid oval base. There’s something inherently playful, yet assertive in the dark coloring and smooth material. Curator: Absolutely, the contrast between dynamism and constraint is key. Look at the way the sculptor employs simplified geometric forms to convey the muscularity of the animal, then considers that such tension and the lack of anatomical naturalism speak more to form and idea than pure aesthetics. Editor: For me, this recalls the enduring symbolic power of the horse across cultures. As an emblem of freedom, strength, virility – it appears in mythology, folklore and now molded to contain, perhaps ironically, spare change. I see something Freudian at play, reducing wild energies down into material form and utility. Curator: The materiality itself is so telling. This is cast metal; its very construction conveys notions of strength, endurance, and value – both real and perceived. Hubley was masterful in that sense, democratizing sculpture by recreating iconic, traditional, images via reproducible media. And as you pointed out earlier, the small-scale forces one’s own domestication of the item. Editor: Exactly! I feel this highlights a desire, or need, to control forces beyond our grasp through objects of sentimental value. It almost becomes a kind of psychological totem! One can sense that there’s that cultural need for that constant affirmation and tangible connection to grander concepts in everyday spaces. Curator: Fascinating – that blend of cultural archetype and the intimacy of the everyday object…it's a rich convergence that makes this humble horse sculpture so intriguing. Editor: Indeed, the formal structure, however simple, hints at larger narratives and the personal aspirations each object carried into a given time period. I found it rather compelling, in this day, too.