Inner Row of Horses
The ten innermost horses are significantly smaller in size than the rest of the herd. Instead of attempting to squeeze human stories onto their tiny tack, I depicted industries that have shaped Virginia’s economy. This afforded me the wiggle room to paint horses in fantastical colors like purple and teal.
Tobacco Horse- Tobacco was first used by Native Americans in sacred religious ceremonies as a medicinal or to seal bargains. Not only was it smoked, but it could be eaten or the juice could be used as a pesticide.
Photograph courtesy of Gail Napora. C2008
Tobacco Horse - detail- a tobacco plant blooming in front of a tobacco barn. Tobacco was first commercially produced by Europeans in Jamestown and was a lucrative cash crop for centuries.
Photograph courtesy of Gail Napora. C2008
Tobacco Horse - detail- painted on the saddle blanket are dried tobacco leaves and below that an image of early settlers bringing in the harvest. The colorful flowers along the tack are Nicotiana blooms.
Photograph courtesy of Gail Napora. C2008
Poultry Horse- detail- Visitors to Rockingham County VA will likely notice the pungent aroma of turkey farms and turkey processing plants. The modern turkey industry has its roots here, commemorated by two bronze turkey statues along historic Route 11 at either end of the county.
Photograph courtesy of Gail Napora. C2008
Poultry Horse- detail- turkey feathers on the saddle blanket, happy chickens ranging free, and yellow peeps on the tack. The horse itself painted with a red mane and tail to call a chicken’s coxcomb and wattle to mind.
Photograph courtesy of Gail Napora. C2008
Photograph courtesy of Gail Napora. C2008
Seafood Horse- The Chesapeake Bay seafood industry supplies a third of the nation’s blue crabs each year. Oysters (their shells painted on the saddle) are harvested from the Bay and Rainbow Trout (saddle blanket) can be found in the fresh river waters feeding into the Bay.
Photograph courtesy of Gail Napora. C2008
Seafood Horse- detail, a relaxing fishing spot
Photograph courtesy of Gail Napora. C2008
Apple Horse- Virginia apple country includes the mountainous region of the northern Shenandoah Valley through the Roanoke Valley. Virginia is the 6th largest producer of apples in the United States and her apples are destined for markets in 15 states and more than 20 countries.
Photograph courtesy of Gail Napora. C2008
Wine Horse- gotta have a purple horse, right? Since wine was first produced in Jamestown in 1608, wineries and vineyards in the Northern Neck and the Blue Ridge Mountains have increasingly popular. Virginia is now home to more than 100 wineries and her wines are growing in reputation since Thomas Jefferson studied various grape varieties and created one of the early vineyards at Monticello.
Photograph courtesy of Gail Napora. C2008
Dairy Horse- Dairy production in Virginia occurs mainly though small family farms. The state’s local economy relies heavily on milk production. Major Dairy producing counties include Rockingham, Franklin, Fauquier, Augusta, and Washington. The horse is painted to resemble a Holstein dairy cow while the saddle blankets are painted with cheese cubes, sloshing milk, a happy cow, and a picnic of delectable dairy products waiting in the grass before a field of grazing cattle.
Photograph courtesy of Gail Napora. C2008
Skiing Horse- a newer industry in Virginia’s mountainous western region, ski resorts are one of the state’s more popular tourist attractions.
Photograph courtesy of Gail Napora. C2008
Skiing Horse- detail- skiiers on the slopes, snow-covered mountain range
Photograph courtesy of Gail Napora. C2008
Skiing Horse- side detail
Photograph courtesy of Gail Napora. C2008
Technology Horse- The horse’s bridle and tack are painted to resemble a circuit board
Photograph courtesy of Gail Napora. C2008
Technology Horse- Virginia is home to the highest number of technology workers in the country. Computer chips became the leading export product from Virginia in 2006, surpassing tobacco and coal combined.
Photograph courtesy of Gail Napora. C2008
Technology Horse- Pattern of binary code and a mega-zoomed in picture of a micro-chip adorn the saddle blanket.
Photograph courtesy of Gail Napora. C2008
Coal Horse- The economy of Southwest Virginia was greatly influenced by the coal mining industry from the 1880’s through the 1980’s. The demand for coal coincided with the popularity of the railroad industry and declined with restrictions from the Clean Air Act in the 1980’s. Virginia is one of the top ten coal producers in the United States and produces four times the amount of coal it consumes.
Photograph courtesy of Gail Napora. C2008
Peanut Horse- Virginia Peanuts have a rich history in the State of Virginia and beyond. From Colonial times to present day, peanuts and the state of Virginia have gone hand and hand. Brought to the southern United States by enslaved West Africans in the 1700s, peanut farming is popular in Southside Virginia, which stretches from Richmond to Lee County. The sandy loam soil and climate are ideal for producing large peanuts. Because of their large kernels, Virginia peanuts have acquired the reputation of being the “Cadillac” of peanuts.
Photograph courtesy of Gail Napora. C2008