4 minute read
Horses In History
HORSES IN HISTORY
Picasso
Songs have been written about him, photographers adore him, and horse lovers travel long distances in the hope of catching a glimpse of him. N.J. QUINLAN brings us the remarkable story of Picasso, a living legend and America’s most famous wild mustang.
In the pre-dawn light he sniffs the air, nickering softly. As the first rays of sunlight bathe the high desert plain, the wild pinto catches the scent of winter on the breeze. He knows that the cold will be coming soon, yet he will survive this winter as he has survived many before. He will find shelter among the gullies with a few trees to block the bitter wind, and perhaps a hiding place with a little vegetation for food. In this way, the old scarred stallion may yet see another spring thaw.
In the human imagination, nothing evokes the essence of pure freedom more than the words ‘wild horses’. Songs, poems and books have been written about their raw power and untamed beauty. It is estimated that there are over 71 thousand wild horses in the western United States. The Sand Wash Basin in the northwestern corner of Colorado is home to over seven hundred of them, yet there is one who has captured the hearts of people everywhere. His name is Picasso and he is the most famous mustang in America.
Picasso, who has several Facebook pages dedicated to him, is followed by thousands of fans around the world - yet there was a time when he was just another wild mustang roaming free across the desert of the Sand Wash Basin. In 2008, when the Bureau of Land Management was conducting a routine roundup, one of the workers spotted a pinto with unusual markings. The stallion’s hide was a rich shade of brown and cream, and his striking two-toned mane was black and white. The worker remarked that he looked ‘like a Picasso’ and that’s been his name ever since.
Though he is one of many, Picasso has been called the ‘Dean of Sand Wash Basin’. His age is estimated to be thirty years – a remarkable age for any horse, and especially rare among the wild mustangs of the West. These horses endure extreme weather conditions, struggling for survival under the baking summer sun and through the freezing depths of winter. Picasso’s face and body are pocked with many scars, reminders of battles lost and won as he fought with other mustangs for territorial rights and the chance to mate with the finest mares.
It has been said that perhaps one of the secrets of Picasso’s longevity is that he knows when to step away from a fight. His battle-worn hide, pitted by rips and tears and with chunks of hide taken out by the teeth of some adversary, are testimony to his courage - yet a mustang does not live in the wild for nearly three decades without an uncommon degree of intelligence. Whereas many other stallions will fight to the death over a mare, the wily Picasso seems to realise when he is beaten and retreats to fight another day.
In 2014, after a long-term romance with a mare named Mingo, Picasso was usurped as leader of his band and dwelt in lonely exile for almost four years. Then in 2018 he fought several pitched battles with a stallion known as Voodoo. The two mustangs were fighting over a filly named Spirit Dancer and their fierce contest spanned several weeks. In the end the younger stallion wore Picasso down, sending the old pinto away bleeding but not broken. Sadly, within a year, both Voodoo and Spirit Dancer were gone, both having been euthanased because of injuries. Picasso, the Dean of Sand Wash Basin, outlived them both.
Picasso’s legacy stretches to more than twenty descendants, many of them bearing the echoes of their sire’s striking colours. Even in the company of other wild mustangs with names like Tashunka, Cimarron, Tango, Flame and Corona, the old stallion stands out. Through social media and the work of photographers like Scott Wilson, Nadja Rider and Carol Walker, Picasso has become a favourite among horse lovers the world over. Many people travel thousands of kilometres in the hope of catching a glimpse of him.
It remains to be seen whether or not
Picasso will make it through another winter, but we can hope that at the end, he will be left alone and allowed to die as he lived – wild, free and unbroken.
“Picasso is just pure, raw, wild horse. He has such a swagger about him … this arrogant, cocky, bring-it-on kind of attitude, and it’s absolutely wonderful to see.”
Scott Wilson
All the images in this article are the work of Scots-born photographer Scott Wilson, a multi-year finalist in the UK Landscape Photographer of the Year competition. Now located in Colorado, his iconic images of Picasso have become the subject of numerous news and equine photography features. See more of Scott’s stunning work at www.wilsonaxpe.com
FACING PAGE: Picasso with that unmistakeable bring-it-on attitude.
