While I’m not a huge fan of traveling circuses I don’t feel as bad about enjoying a little art on the subject. Perhaps the most interesting part about these pieces is the sort of surreal point of view they all seem to take.
Art of All Types
In most of these images the horses are grand and handsome figures & I’m guessing (hoping anyway) that some of the original circuses were proud of their animals & took great care of them.
While most of these paintings seem to reflect that idea, artists have also been known to be great salesmen…
Circus Rider – Ernst Ludwig Kirchner
Title Unknown – Ernst Ludwig Kirchner
Equestrienne at the Cirque Fernando – Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec
The Circus – George Wesley Bellows
The Circus – Georges Seurat
At the Circus, Horse and Monkey Dressage – Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec
The Stray
Out of all of these circus images, perhaps the most honest one is Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec whose viewpoint is more twisted than surreal. If you like these, be sure to check out a huge variety of horse art in our art section.
Thank you for gathering these all in one place. I teach a class on Calder and always include “artists who loved the circus” in my introduction to his work. Thanks! Toni