Nancy B. Frank
Photographer and painter, Nancy B Frank is a former Wisconsite with substantial training: BFA/MFA, art-fellowships including the MacDowell Colony, a year's study in Rome, Italy and 5 years as Adjunct Instructor teaching serigraphy at NYU. She has worked successfully in mediums as varied as painted wooden jewelry, sculptured cakes, painted furniture, "faux" decorative painting and photography, while consistently working as a fine art painter.
About her paintings:
1. SILVER
Silver is a Kiger Mustang that came to me when he was 13 years old through an animal rescue.
There are two herds of Kiger Mustangs in the isolated Steen Mountains of Oregon. They can be traced to the original Spanish Conquistador horses and are thus highly protected. They are usually buckskin color, often with zebra stripes on their legs, but Silver is “white”, or a gray horse (with dark black skin). As isolated at the Steen mountains were, it seems a big grey draft horse stallion appeared in the herd. Thus Silver could be considered a half-draft horse.
2. 3 DAY EVENTOR
This horse was participating at the 2010 FEI World Equestrian Games in Lexington, KY. 3 Day Eventing is a primo horse competition which tests a horse’s endurance and
flexibility. The first day is a dressage test, which tests a highly conditioned horse to
comply with submission and relaxation in a certain pattern within an arena space.
The second day is the cross county event when horses gallop through a timed jump
course, through water obstacles and jumps that are stationary so do not “give” if a
horse doesn’t make it over the jump. Arena jumping is on the third day, when the
horses are tired,, jump through a pattern of within a limited time.
3. SOREN
Soren is a Warmblood stallion owned by a trainer with whom I’ve worked, She is
training Soren using long lines, essentially driving him from behind.
4. THE THINKER (WPL)
This is a painting of a Lusitano stallion from Golegã, a charming town in the center of
Portugal famous for its annual horse fair. All the top breeders attend this important event, the origins of which date back to the 18th century, with many of Portugal’s most refined breeds (such as the Lusitano, Sorraia, Alter Real, Garrano and Terceira) competing. 100 stallions and riders are paraded around the ring in their traditional finery, performing piaffes and passage and pirouettes. I was drawn to this horse because of his kind eye.
