National Hunt Racing Prints

Flat Racing Prints

HORSE RACING PRINTS, equine, arabian and hunting artwork can fall into many different catergories of personal interest. On this page we have tried to make it easier to find a horse racing print which is specific to your needs or interests. By catergorising the artwork into specific disciplines, hopefully it will make finding a suitable piece of equine artwork easier.

If you are looking for a retirement present for somebody who had a passion for hunting, then simply click the hunting print button below and peruse our entire range of hunting prints and funny catoons.

We have an extensive range of horse racing and equine artwork, featuring autuographed prints, general horse racing scenes, flat racing prints, national hunt racing prints, specific horse prints, arabian horse prints and hunting prints. We hope you find a piece of suitable artwork. If you require further help finding something appropriate, please contact our office on 0115 9286512.

The History of Horses In Art:

The horse appeared in prehistoric cave paintings such as those in the Lascaux caves, estimated to be 16,000 years old.

Prehistoric hill figures have been carved in the shape of the horse, specifically the Uffington White Horse, an example of the tradition of horse carvings upon hill-sides, which having existed for thousands of years continues into the current age.

The equine image was common in ancient Egyptian and Grecian art, more refined images displaying greater knowledge of equine anatomy appeared in Classical Greece and in later Roman work. Horse-drawn chariots were commonly depicted in ancient works, for example on the Standard of Ur circa 2500BC. The Horses of Saint Mark are the sole surviving example from Classical Antiquity of a monumental statue of the Quadriga.

The horse was less prevalent in early Christian and Byzantine art, overwhelmed by the dominance of religious themes.

The Renaissance period starting in the 14th century brought a resurgence of the horse in art. Painters of this period who portrayed the horse included Paolo Uccello, Benozzo Gozzoli, Leonardo da Vinci, Albrecht Dürer, Raphael, Andrea Mantegna and Titian. In 1482 the Duke of Milan Ludovico il Moro, commissioned Leonardo da Vinci to create the largest equestrian statue in the world, a monument to the duke's father Francesco, however Leonardo's horse was never completed, (until it was replicated in the late 20th century).

In the Baroque era the tradition of equine portraiture was established, with artists such as Peter Paul Rubens, Anthony van Dyck and Diego Velázquez portraying regal subjects atop their mounts. Equine sporting art also became established in this era as the tradition of horse racing emerged under Tudor patronage.

The mid 18th century saw the emergence of Romanticism, French artists Théodore Géricault and Eugène Delacroix were proponents of this movement and both portrayed the horse in many of their works.

George Stubbs born in 1724 became so associated with his equestrian subjects that he was known as "the horse painter". A childhood interest in anatomy was applied to the horse he spent eighteen months dissecting equine carcasses and had an engraver produce book plates of his studies. These anatomical drawings aided later artists.

Rosa Bonheur, The Horse Fair, 1853–1855, Metropolitan Museum of Art
Equine sporting art was popular in the 19th century, notable artists of the period being Benjamin Marshall, James Ward, Henry Thomas Alken, James Pollard and John Frederick Herring, Sr.. Horse racing gradually became more established in France and Impressionist painter Edgar Degas painted many early racing scenes. Degas was one of the first horse painters to use photographic references. Eadweard Muybridge's photographic studies of animal motion had a huge influence on equine art as they allowed artists greater understanding of the horses gaits.

Rosa Bonheur became famous primarily for two chief works: Ploughing in the Nivernais (in French: Le labourage nivernais, le sombrage) and, The Horse Fair (in French: Le marché aux chevaux) (which was exhibited at the Salon of 1853 (finished in 1855) and is now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, in New York City. Bonheur is widely considered to have been the most famous female painter of the nineteenth century.

Isidore Bonheur, the younger brother of Rosa Bonheur, is known as one of the 19th century's most distinguished French animalier sculptors. He modeled his sculptures to catch movement or posture characteristic of the particular species. Isidore Bonheur achieved this most successfully with his sculptures of horses, usually depicted as relaxed rather than spirited, and which are among his most renowned works.

Sir Alfred Munnings was an acclaimed painter working in England during the 20th century, he was elected president of the Royal Academy in 1944. He specialised in equine subjects, including horse racing, portraiture and studies of gypsies and rural life.