Painted Horse

A detailed Summary of Painted Horse

To have a freedom, is to have unrestricted independence over a situation or decision. A perfect example of which, is the freedom of choice which all living things have. Alex Colville's painting, "Horse and Train", provokes a sense of wonder in the viewer by leaving them guessing what the outcome of this scene will be. In this scene, "the horse is free to change direction, the engineer to engage brakes" (National, 2000). Alex Colville's, "Horse and Train", symbolizes one's freedom to make choices.

"Alex Colville was born in Toronto in 1920 and grew up in Amherst, Nova Scotia, where his family moved in 1929" (National, 2000). His main influence in painting came after university when he became a war artist. He was sent to such places as the "the liberated Belsen concentration camp" (National Film, 1983), where he painted such soldiers and the deceased. Painting in such environments would bring out emotions and thoughts relating to such issues as, life, death, peace, and war. The theory of life and death can be seen quite apparently in Colville's "Horse and Train".

Many questions regarding life and death are brought up by viewing this painting. Why is this horse running straight at the train? "Is it memorized by the light?

Considering this painting was painted in 1954, right in the midst of the baby boom, it is seen that it also portrays a sense of rebellion by the horse to the humans moving in to its territory. During this era of the baby boom, Colville noticed that the population was clearly rising quite rapidly. With the population on the rise the human civilizations would have to move out in to the countryside. This picture is in fact of the countryside, with no habitation in sight. With this setting in mind it is noted that the train and tracks do not actually belong in the painting at all. Humans by way of the train are encroaching on the horses land. By depicting the horse with it's ears pointed back and it's tail flowing in the wind, Colville instils the sense of speed and determination of the horse to confront and rid it's land of the humans. Through human infringement on the horse's territory, the horse shows rebellion by challenging the train on the tracks.

When focusing on the train in the background of the picture the viewer is made aware of the ethical dilemma the engineer of the train faces. The engineer is faced with many questions such as, "is it worth stopping? How much does the death of the horse matter? Which is more dangerous - to brake and cause a possible derailment, or to keep going and risk a deadly collision? (National, 2000). All of these questions rely on the morals of the engineer. The engineer can choose to be ignorant to the fact that the horse is headed straight for the train and keep on going full speed. If the engineer wants to avoid the collision to spare the life of the horse he must engage the brakes as he can not deviate from the tracks. The ethical dilemma brought up by the "Horse and Train", is regarding the moral choic

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Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: Arts