Icelandic Horses Gather at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin

The 2013 Icelandic Horse World Championships launched this morning at the Platz der 18 Mars, in front of the Brandenburg Gate. A parade of horses and riders from over twenty nations clopped up the Strasse des 17 Juni through the middle of the Tiergarten park in the centre of Berlin and stood in a circle …

The Mares of Diomedes Gallop On

In Greek myth Heracles’ eighth task is to steal the flesh-eating mares of the giant Diomedes: Podagros, Lampon, Xanthos and Deinos. Heracles is victorious in the ensuing struggle with Diomedes, and feeds his body to the horses who chomp him up with much relish and gore, as in all the best Greek literature. In some …

May the Horse Live in Me

One of the less than lovely things about writing a book is acknowledging that your favourite lines of enquiry sometimes just don’t fit into the finished product. They are the wildest, most fascinating goose chases, but they just will not bend and be shaped into that book thing you’ve built. They won’t be twined into …

Dashed Dreams of White Horses?

Sad news. The 50m high statue of a grey horse by artist Mark Wallinger that was to be built at Ebbsfleet in Kent may not go ahead as it’s costs have risen prohibitively and donations have dried up. The Times reports: The mood was different when the Ebbsfleet Landmark Project (ELP) was launched in 2008, …

Working Like Trojans

Some Marengo High School students wanted to do something big. Their project for humanities class had to have something to do with the ancient Greeks. … “It was a surprise and it was a big surprise,” said teacher Bob Pomykala said. The students wouldn’t tell Pomykala what they were up to. “They said they had …

Paper Horses

Thank you to Tony for sending me this link to a New York Times piece on Australian artist Anna-Wili Highfield’s work. She makes three-dimensional paper sculptures of animals – including horses and pegasi – which are featherlight, substantial and full of movement. There’s a fine “race horse” here and a boxed Whistlejacket which I think …

Pimlico Blows a Horn

If Pegasus sprang forth from the Hippocrene fountain on Mount Helicon, then I’d guess that “Kegasus” flopped out of a spray of flat Budweiser in a place I’d rather never visit. Yes, Kegasus. Kegasus the Centaur (let’s not get too deep into Greek myths and what centaurs did to women and the fact that they …

Maxi Cob

Bexley residents voted for this beautiful steel statue of a gypsy cob by Andy Scott to be installed on an industrial-estate roundabout. Here he is in a blaze of lights, and here you can see him under construction.  The Belvedere Cob is a tribute to the local travelling community, which has deep roots. Andy Scott …