#628 Anna Hyatt Huntington and Brookgreen . . . horses, con't.

Please start this series of blogs about horses with post # 616

This post further examines the two Anna Hyatt Huntington [1876-1973] horse sculptures at Brookgreen Gardens 

that were spotlighted in the previous post, #627:  "Fighting Stallions" and "Youth Taming the Wild".  

In this post, I'll introduce another large horse monument at Brookgreen entitled "In Memory of the Work Horse"; 

created by Anna Hyatt Huntington, cast in bronze, and installed at Brookgreen in 1964. 

Anna Hyatt Huntington is recognized as one of the foremost American animaliers.  She was a pioneer in the use of aluminum as a sculpture medium which gave a life and brilliance of surface that showed fine modeling in poor light.  Below, are two images of "Fighting Stallions" located at the entrance to Brookgreen Gardens in Murrell's Inlet,

 South Carolina.  More images of this dramatic monument can be seen on the previous post.

Many sculptors in France and in America began to specialize in animal sculpture in the nineteenth century and "animaliers" became a favorite branch of the sculptural arts.  Huntington was fascinated by horses and came to know their anatomy so well that she could model them from memory.  The first sculpture to be carved expressly for Brookgreen was her "Youth Taming the Wild", 1933.  With the pioneer movement westward still a reality, themes that underscored the conquest of the New World were popular.  Shown below, are three images of the monument . . . additional images of 

Huntington's "Youth Taming the Wild" can be seen on the previous blog.

During Anna's youth, she often observed and worked with large draft horsed used for plowing 

and hauling hay at the family farm in Annisquam, Massachusettes.  The memory of this image provided 

inspiration for several sculptures throughout her career depicting the work horse.

The heroic-sized bronze sculpture,  "In Memory of the Work Horse" was installed at Brookgreen in 1964 and depicts the team of farmer and horse . . . she expertly presents a vignette from the past in a poignant yet unsentimental manner.  Shown below are images of one of my favorite Huntington sculptures, "In Memory of the Work Horse".

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Blog, text, photos, drawings, and sculpture . . . © Sandy Scott and Trish