My Gypsy Caravan Horse is another in a long line of images inspired by the things we humans do to and with our animal "friends".  

 

I am amazed at the sheer abundance of uses and alterations we employ to make horses (and other animals) more accommodating of our "needs".  We never tire when it comes to how to adapt their natural state, such that they might be more helpful or enjoyable for us .  And horses don't really seem to mind.  They still like us.  

 

Try strapping a saddle on a cat and you get what I would more likely expect an animal to do.  I think horses are about as good of sports as are imaginable, and I appreciate that such creatures exist.  In this piece I was making a little sport of the (maybe) fact that Gypsies seem to adorn themselves with quite a bit of stuff, but don't seem so concerned with what is is, and much of their belongings are hanging together by a thread. The horse itself is needing it's head held up by trussing, counterweighted by stones, yet he seems fairly unconcerned by the situation. All in a days work.