When you enter the National Gallery in London England,walk up the first flight of steps,turn to the right and there he is at the end of the hallway. He is looking right at you. It is Whistlejacket.
George Stubbs was commissioned by the 2nd Marquess of Rockingham to paint the stallion Whistlejacket in 1762. Stubbs studied the anatomy of horses closely and his paintings were very lifelike. There are a few interesting stories about the Whistlejacket painting.
- King George III was supposed to have been added to the painting riding Whistlejacket. This may or may not be true. Rockingham may have wanted to just honor the horse alone without a rider. Besides that Rockingham had fallen out with the King so he might not have wanted him depicted on his favorite horse.
- So lifelike is this almost life size painting that when the real life stallion saw the painted Whistlejacket he tried to attack it thinking it was another stallion!
Happy Monday everyone!
Wow, a life-sized painting! I’d never heard of this before.
Do you happen to remember what breed Whistlejacket was?
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I think he was Arab descent . So either Arab or early Thoroughbred.
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Gracius!
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My family knows how much I like horse picture or statues . I can understand how amazing it looks. Thanks for sharing
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Stunning life like painting! Handsome creature. 💗
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Yes it is stunning. Thanks so much for commenting!
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Beautiful painting. Now you mention it, it does look like a rider was meant to have been added. It’s better without.
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I agree. Better without the rider and also no background scenery. The horse is the star.
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great post thanks for share looking forward for your future post
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Incredibly life like. Maybe it’s just an optical illusion, but the eyes look a touch sad to me.
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Hmmm…They could be a bit sad. I have found them to be piercing and looking intently back at me. When I next go to see the painting in the National Gallery I will look at the original to see how they look.
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A beautiful painting Anne, a very happy Monday to you and Biasini too! xxx
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Happy Monday and Happy week to yiu Xenia and also for Pearl and Eivor.🌷
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Thank you Anne! 🙂💜 xxx
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A true real life painting ..for sure.
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If you are ever in London go to the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square. Entry is free. And see this in person. It’s worth it.
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Yes indeed. We had the good fortune to visit London some time ago. I would love to go back.
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