Behold the Golden Horse 2020

Jammie Holmes painted ‘Behold the Golden Horse’ with oils, and you can really see the physicality of the medium. It is interesting to imagine the painting coming into being—the horse emerging stroke by stroke through trial, error, and intuition. The surface looks like it was heavily reworked. I imagine that Jammie felt like this one was really hard won, like he was really *in* the studio battling it out. The dominant colors are browns and greys, which makes the child's pink shirt and the horse's golden color really pop. The painting is done with very loose gestures, except for the horse's head which is more precise. I wonder if Jammie sees the horse’s head as a portrait of a person? It puts me in mind of other figurative painters, like Nicole Eisenman, but also more loosely connected to someone like Francis Picabia. All painters are in conversation, they inspire one another’s creativity across time. I think the painting embraces ambiguity and uncertainty, allowing for multiple interpretations.