Book & Art Nook

Life with Horses is Never Orderly

Review by Nancy Brannon robert Burns’ poem “to A mouse” might as well have been intended for a horse, when he wrote “the best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men gang aft agley… ” which we often translate to “oft go awry. ” that’s pretty much the theme in morgane schmidt’s book Life with Horses is Never Orderly: Cartoons for Riders Who Are In on the Joke. if there are two things that equestrians and horse owners have learned over time it’s, one, that horses will often upset our “best laid plans” with plans of their own and, two, to laugh at these situations. schmidt certainly understands the crazy times of life with horses, having owned and competed horses in eventing and dressage for years. And she certainly knows how to bring humor to the most maddening and frustrating situations. she has been a lifelong fan of thelwell cartoons and began her own comic series in 2011, illustrating her funny reflections on life with horses. ten years later, she turned her witty observations into a booklength collection of cartoon characters that every horse owner will find something to laugh about. so, bring more humor into your life as you peruse the topics herein: Horse ownership, good Barn-keeping, seasonsAre fun, ChallengeAccepted, on the road, ‘tis the season, if Horses Are from Heaven, riders vs. Normal society, and Never seen Before. the book begins with “Horses: the ultimate in character building, ” taking you through a variety of humorous situations that horse owners face every day. there’s a list of “things i have worried about today as a horse owner” and “Books i could write as an equestrian, ” such as money in, manure out, a novel, and Broke, Broken and Bedraggled. the illustration of the horse trailer looking like a giant beast’s open mouth with tongue as a ramp is right on target from a horse’s point of view for not wanting to load. And famous last words: “this horse is bombproof! Beginners ride this horse. my grandma rides this horse!” is illustrated with a pony bucking and a child flying through the air.

How to Read Horse Sale Ads begins with the usual sale text and translates that into what it really means. “is sensitive to his surroundings” translates to “he spooks at everything. ” “Always in the ribbons” translates to “mostly pink and green in shows with no more than 5 or 6 in the class. ” “free horse” is illustrated as a “bottomless money pit. ” there’s also an equine vocabulary, as defined by horses themselves. throughout the book, people are characterized as “small predators, aka staff. ” And, of course, social media followers will want to read “if equestrians were Honest with their facebook Posts. ”

Good Barn-keeping takes you through daily routines at the barn, where shoveling manure is a major part of the day, illus-

trated by “the top 5 mostAnnoying moments when Cleaning stalls.

” of course, the most annoying is when you accidently slam the pitchfork into the stall door or wall, which flings the carefully collected manure everywhere. my favorite in this chapter is “if your Horse had a Planner. ” every day ’s routine includes a “catered breakfast, maid service, ‘noonsies, ’ catered dinner, and night snack, with various special events throughout the week. monday is body work; tuesday is acupuncture; Wednesday is pedicure with the farrier; thursday is spa day; friday is chiropractor and massage.

Puddles 101 illustrates how horses leap over mud puddles on the way to turnout, but then roll in the mud puddle after being turned out. this goes well with “ where would your horse choose to roll?” in Seasons are Fun, my favorite cartoon is “ when your horse has a sense of humor” that depicts a tiny “snow man” made of manure balls. “snow ” compares how nonhorse people see it and how horse people see it.And there’s “reason #17 why equestrians winter in florida. ”

Challenge Accepted explains why training isn’t for the faint of heart. “if my horse was aware that social distancing was a thing” is illustrated by the horse avoiding being haltered.

Different Perspectives contrasts “ what you see” with “ what your horse sees. ” read this to understand why horses spook. Another funny illustration is using the tractor and front-end loader to push the horse into the horse trailer. “i thought you were into Natural Horsemanship, ” the horse thinks. equine yoga provides proof that your horse can bend when he wants to (imagine fergus reaching under the fence for a juicy blade of grass).

On the Road explores traveling with horses. did you know that horses who ride together in the trailer for 15 minutes are married for life? don’t miss the “checklists: horse show edition” for how to prepare for a horse show. Braiding? Another exercise in futility. other funny ones are the “dressage Pit Crew ” and “today ’s spook is brought to you by – the letterA. ” then there’s deciphering your dressage test, where most of the squiggles in the “remarks” section make no sense. in ‘Tis the Season, check out “APony ’s Christmas list, ” which begins with “Horse treats. ” valentine’s date Night tip#12 says: “No matter how cute he says you look in breeches and boots and no matter how unnatural it is for you, you should leave enough time to shower and change into normal people clothes before going out on a date. ” in the chapter If Horses Are From Heaven, you ’ ve probably seen “the many faces of mare, ” all nine of which are the same irritated, ears back look regardless of whether she’s happy, bored, playful, hungry, stressed, or whatever. “time for Pony Camp” shows a horse talking to a pony covered with paintings of hearts, rainbows, flowers, and hand prints. Pony says, “the next person that touches me is losing a finger. ” in Never Seen Before, “horses can be summed up simply as: it as all going so well – until it wasn’t” as that plastic bag flies by. solving rubik’s Cube? Child’s play compared to reassembling your bridle after cleaning it. untangling polo wraps from the wash is something we’ ve all tried to do and requires the skill level of an expert problem solver. finally, “my Horse’s motto: there’s never a bad time for snacks” as the horse eats the greenery in the box by dressage letter C.

No doubt, you ’ll find more than one thing you ’ ve experienced with your horse illustrated here. it’s always good to bring humor into your life with horses; helps you cope with the frustrating and unexpected. find out more about the book, at: www.horseandriderbooks.com/store/lifewith-horses-is-never-orderly.html

middleburg, vA, 1/18/2022 - the National sporting library & museum is thrilled to present the flagstone exhibition, 2020 Hindsight: 40 Years of the American Academy of Equine Art, which opened November 12, 2021 and runs through march 20, 2022.this exhibition explores the rich history of the American Academy of equine Art (AAeA) with a dynamic selection of works selected to highlight the varied talents fostered by this influential organization.

Begun in middleburg, vA, in 1980 and now based in lexington, ky, theAAeAis a non-profit organization “dedicated to promoting and sharing representational art that celebrates the horse in sport and life. it also offers hands-on instruction from practicing equine artists with a goal of fostering artistic excellence in the genre. ” the AAeA’s founding members were some of the top sporting painters and sculptors of the day. forty years later, the organization still inspires generations of equine artists in all manner of media, techniques, and artistic influences. 2020 Hindsight features works by founders, celebrating their accomplishments and commitment to equine art. sculptures, paintings, etchings, and drawings feature horses jumping, sorting cattle, playing polo, and in daily barn activities such as shoeing or grooming. find more information at the National sporting library and museum at: http://www.nationalsporting.org

Booth Malone (American, b. 1950) Walk Up I, 2020, oil on canvas

Booth Malone, (American, b. 1950), Burrland Road, Orange County Hounds, 2018, oil on linen

Kathleen Friedenberg (American, b. 1942) Opening Meet, 2006, Bronze

Marilyn Newmark (American, 1928–2013) Man o’ War, 1977

Richard Stone Reeves (American, 1919–2005) Mill Reef and Geoff Lewis, 1977, oil on canvas

Linda Volrath, Alfred Hunt Steeplethon, Glenwood Park, 2021, oil, linen on board

Learnihan, Meryl (American, b. 1952) Just Taking It In, 2021

Dala Horse: Symbol of Sweden

the dalahast, or dala horse, is the most recognized swedish folk art internationally. once a by-product of local furnituremaking business, it was sold as a children’s toy and later as a barter item. these carved wooden figurines have been part of swedish culture for centuries. it became a permanent symbol of sweden in 1939 in the New york World’s fair. there are many stories that accompanied the dala horse, from Paganism and witchcraft tovikings.the horse itself was considered as a status symbol and highly valued property in the swedish household. the dala horse’s colorful design, fancy oil painting, is a simplified form of kurbits painting.this colorful painting distinguishes itself through exaggerated richness of detail and was painted on walls, cupboards, chests and mora clocks in the areas around siljan. the painting started in leksand and rättvik around 1780 and during the 19th century it was even practiced in mora. on the dala horses, kurbits painting is usually shown in the flower-patterned saddle. traditionally these horses were painted in red or left as is without paints. But in the 1830s swedish artist, stikå erik Hansson became known for painting his own unique dala horses with a two-color simplified form of kurbits decoration. Hansson’s dala horse pattern has since become the tradition for dala horse making in sweden.

DALAHÄST. Attributed to Stikå Erik Hansson, Risa, Mora dated 1880.

Winner of

2021 EQUUS Film and Arts Festival Equestrian Overall Literary Award

Readers ’ Favorite five-star reviews recipient

Get to the Heart of the Matter

Author Adrienne Neary weaves the tangible and intangible qualities of the equine heart into an inspiring tribute to our equine partners, featuring famous racehorses, famous horses in history, and a fascinating perspective of how horses have helped and continue to help all of humankind. You ’ll this book!

Beech Tree Arts

supports horse lovers everywhere with empowering information. Find this book at: https://store.bookbaby.com/book/Legendary-Hearts-of-Horses Also available on Amazon and other online booksellers

Horse lovers sometimes describe their equine partners as having a “lot of heart, ” referring to their ability to go farther, do more, and perform long after we expect exhaustion has set in. Champion thoroughbred racehorse secretariat was the epitome of a horse with a lot of heart. He was one of the most beautiful, anatomically correct horses there ever was, with ideal biomechanics that produced a 24foot, 11-inch stride.

And when thomas swerczek, dvm, Ph.d. performed the necropsy on secretariat, shortly after his death on october 4, 1989, he made one of the most incredible discoveries of his career. secretariat’s heart was at least 2.5 times larger than the average horse’s heart. it weighed approximately 21-22 pounds, compared to the averagethoroughbred’s heart at 8-9 pounds. dr. swerczek was amazed. “there were no pathological abnormalities of the heart; all chambers were normal; there were no lesions. it was a perfect heart, everything was just bigger, ” he found. the revelation of secretariat’s super heart set the horse industry afire, revealing empirical evidence to support the anecdotal. Legendary Hearts of Horses follows the equine large heart trail instigated by this famousAmericanthoroughbred. Neary delves into the equine pedigree history that other researchers identified as being the fountain spring of this marvelous trait, but then diverges from that trodden path. she boldly jumps into the vast pool of equine evolution and human ambition in order to discover more outstanding examples of stamina and loyalty. Neary clearly connects the large heart trait to ‘old World’horses, even suggesting that horses in the wild had been very creative and proactive about their own survival. this is a fascinating journey into the history of horses possessing larger than normal hearts, intertwining all the aspects of horse heart regardless of its physical size.the narrative deftly unravels how inseparable the tangible and intangible qualities of heart really are. from thrilling feats of speed and endurance, to the tenderness and forgiveness freely given, you will feel the spirit of Heart that resides not only within horses, but within all of us.

“While my research spanned well over ten years, it’s an ongoing passion. Pedigrees tell amazing stories. in my opinion, the real reason extra large hearts show up in horses is closely tied to the mysteries that govern life, not just to the chemistry involved, ” Neary writes in the book’s introduction.

Adrienne N. Neary is an internationally recognized equine digital artist and producer of equine anatomy charts, equine researcher, equine energy facilitator, and classical dressage rider.

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