Whistlejacket, By George Stubbs

The painting I chose is a masterpiece named Whistlejacket, by George Stubbs. Made in 1762, it is George's most famous work. The tableau grabbed my attention as it was beautifully painted, detailed and quite different than all the others. As it is life-size, seeing the painting in the flesh was impressive. The horse strikes you as being very realistic, and in movement. The simple camouflage-coloured background really brings out the importance of the animal. It enforces power and confidence, while still showing off its natural beauty. George wanted to show terror in his eyes and present him as a wild horse. Standing in a defensive position, Whistlejacket looks frightened by something. Even though everybody was confused as to why there was no background, we are pretty sure that George intended to finish it like that, as there are shadows of the horses' back legs on the ground. This painting looked
His name originates by the colour of his coat. An olden-time medicine called whistlejacket (a mix of gin and treacle) was often used to cure coughs. "Whistle", was another name for "throat", and "jacket" was the feeling it did around your throat when you took it. The shade of it is the same as this horses', which is how his name got picked. Whistlejacket was believed to be the grandchild of one of the three original wild Arabian horses to come to England. He raced from 1752, winning many little races in the North. After losing two big races, he was sold to the Duke of Rockingham. He then triumphed in a famous 4-mile race in York (August 1759), but was put into stud when he was just ten years old. He was notoriously temperamental and difficult to manage. Whistlejacket was reckoned to be the best-looking horse of England, even though he was not a very successful race horse. He died in his thirties, before Rockingham's death, in July