George Stubbs, A Saddled Bay Hunter, 1786. Oil paint on panel; 21 3/4 × 27 3/4 in. (55.2 × 70.5 cm). Gift of the Berger Collection Educational Trust, 2019.10

image height: 21 3/4 in, 55.2450 cm; image width: 27 3/4 in, 70.4850 cm; frame height: 28 1/8 in, 71.4375 cm; frame width: 33 5/8 in, 85.4075 cm; frame depth: 3 3/4 in, 9.5250 cm

European and American Art Before 1900

European Painting and Sculpture before 1900

England’s greatest horse painter, George Stubbs first became interested in horses while apprenticing to his father, a leather and hide merchant. Although he began his career as a portraitist in his native Liverpool, Stubbs developed a strong interest in anatomy, both human and equine. He prepared illustrations for a midwifery textbook and, anticipating the major work of his career, dissected and drew dead horses. Settled in London during the 1760s, he published The Anatomy of the Horse. With his knowledge of the horse’s physique he produced startlingly realistic images that soon established him as an animal painter of the first rank. Bay hunters such as the majestic animal portrayed here—with his thick neck, strong body, and short legs—were ideal for traversing rough terrain.

Thos. Agnew & Sons, London; Lt. Col. R. Myddleton, Chirk Castle; sale, Sotheby’s, London, 1964; Mr. and Mrs. Jack R. Dick; their sale, Sotheby’s, London, June 26, 1974, lot 90; from which acquired by Kurt E. Schon, Ltd., New Orleans; from which acquired by the William Oliver and Evalyn Poole Collection, Texas, by 1979; private collection, U.S.; Patrick Ellis, Petworth, West Sussex, England; with Simon Gillespie Studio, London; from which acquired by William M. B. Berger and Bernadette Johnson Berger, Denver, 1997; Berger Collection Educational Trust; gifted to the Denver Art Musuem, 2019. Provenance research is on-going at the Denver Art Museum and we will post information as it becomes available. Please e-mail provenance@denverartmuseum.org, if you have questions, or if you have additional information to share with us.

• “Treasures from the Berger Collection: British Paintings 1400-2000” — Denver Art Museum, 10/2/2014 – 9/9/2018